ePublishing - EU-27 | Statista Market Forecast

The ePublishing market in EU-27 is projected to witness a significant growth in revenue, reaching US$8.97bn by 2024.
This is expected to result in an annual growth rate (CAGR 2024-2027) of 2.00%, leading to a projected market volume of US$9.52bn by 2027.
Among the various segments in the ePublishing market, the largest market is ePapers Advertising, with a market volume of US$3.03bn in 2024.
Furthermore, the number of readers in the ePublishing market is expected to reach 86.4m users by 2027.
The user penetration rate in the ePublishing market is projected to be at 9.4% in 2024.
Additionally, the average revenue per user (ARPU) is expected to amount to US$107.20.
In global comparison, United States is anticipated to generate the highest revenue in the ePublishing market, reaching US$21.77bn in 2024.
Germany is experiencing a surge in ePublishing, with a growing number of authors and readers embracing digital platforms for their books.

Definition:

Epublishing, also known as electronic publishing, refers to the process of creating, distributing, and selling written, visual, or auditory content in digital format through online platforms or digital devices such as eBooks, eMagazines, eJournals, and audiobooks. Epublishing has become increasingly popular in the digital age, allowing authors, publishers, and content creators to reach a wide audience globally without the need for traditional print media. Epublishing typically involves digital conversion of written or visual content into a format that can be easily read or accessed on various digital devices such as e-readers, tablets, smartphones, and computers. It may also involve online distribution, marketing, and sales of digital content through eCommerce platforms, online bookstores, or subscription-based services. Epublishing has revolutionized the publishing industry, enabling greater accessibility, convenience, and flexibility for both content creators and consumers.

Structure:

The market consists out of ePapers, eMagazines, and eBooks, which represents the electronic version of the respective products. The market also covers ePapers advertising and eMagazine advertising.

Additional Information:

The market comprises revenues, users, average revenue per user, and penetration rates. Revenues are generated through in-app purchases, consumer spending and subscription fees. Additional definitions for each market can be found within the respective market pages. Market numbers are also available in the advertising and media topic.

Paid digital editorial written content distributed over the Internet
eBooks (fiction, non-fiction & academic eBooks)
Digital editions of consumer & trade/business magazines (eMagazine)
Digital editions of daily or weekly newspapers (ePapers)

Open access content
Paid content on newspaper or magazine websites
Bundled subscriptions where digital editions come as a free extra

Although the ePublishing market has seen many attempts to establish popular business models (e.g., subscription-based services), the market still hasn’t succeeded in reaching a significant shift of user numbers towards subscriptions. Services offering unlimited access like Readly are lacking comprehensive portfolios of wide-reaching and popular publications such as big newspapers or magazines as those prefer to sell their electronic versions on their own. In this context, Apple could be a glimmer of hope to have the lasting traction to combine meaningful content from major publishers into one single service.

Data coverage:

The data encompasses B2C enterprises. Figures are based on the ePublishing market. ePublishing is defined as paid editorial/written content distributed over the internet, including eBooks (fiction, non-fiction, and academic publications), digital editions (replicas) of consumer and trade/business magazines (eMagazines), as well as daily or weekly newspapers (ePapers). All monetary figures refer to consumer spending on digital goods or subscriptions in the respective market. This spending factors in discounts, margins, and taxes.

Modeling approach / market size:

The market size is determined through a bottom-up approach. We use annual financial reports of the market-leading companies and industry associations, third-party studies and reports, survey results from our primary research (e.g., the Statista Global Consumer Survey), as well as performance factors (e.g., user penetration, price per product, usage) to analyze the markets. To estimate the market size for each country individually, we use relevant key market indicators and data from country-specific industry associations, such as various macroeconomic indicators, historical developments, current trends, and reported performance indicators of key market players. In particular, we consider average prices and annual purchase frequencies.

Forecasts:

We apply a variety of forecasting techniques, depending on the behavior of the relevant market. For instance, the S-curve function and exponential trend smoothing are well suited for forecasting digital products and services due to the non-linear growth of technology adoption. The main drivers are GDP per capita, consumer spending per capita, and 4G coverage.

Additional notes:

The data is modeled using current exchange rates. The market is updated twice a year in case market dynamics change. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is considered at a country-specific level. The data is modeled using current exchange rates. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russia-Ukraine war are considered at a country-specific level. The market is updated twice a year. In some cases, the data is updated on an ad hoc basis (e.g., when new, relevant data has been released or significant changes within the market have an impact on the projected development). GCS data is reweighted for representativeness.

This report presents a comprehensive analysis and additional information on the Digital market, in a PDF format.