News

Trade (Consumer Book) Revenues Up 13.4% for Month of August, and Up 8.1% Year-to-Date

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today released its StatShot report for August 2024 reflecting reported revenue for Trade (Consumer Books), Religious Presses, Higher Education Course Materials, and Professional Publishing.

Total revenues across all categories for August 2024 were up 8.5% as compared to August 2023, coming in at $1.7 billion. Year-to-date revenues were up 7.8%, at $9.3 billion for the first eight months of the year.

Trade (Consumer Books) Revenues

August

Trade (Consumer Books) revenues were up 13.4% in August, coming in at $848.2 million.

In terms of physical paper format revenues during the month of August, in the Trade (Consumer Books) category, Hardback revenues were up 17.1%, coming in at $297.4 million; Paperbacks were up 6.7%, with $302.0 million in revenue; Mass Market was down 35.8% to $8.6 million; and Special Bindings were up 3.6%, with $21.5 million in revenue.

eBook revenues were up 6.1% for the month as compared to August 2023 for a total of $90.4 million, and the Digital Audio format was up 38.8% for August, coming in at $93.9 million in revenue. Physical Audio was down 54.8% coming in at $600 thousand.

Year-to-date

Year-to-date Trade revenues were up 8.1% at $5.9 billion for the first eight months of the year. Hardback revenues were up 8.0%, coming in at $2.0 billion; Paperbacks were up 5.9%, with $2.1 billion in revenue; Mass Market was down 18.1% to $81.9 million; and Special Bindings were up 6.0%, with $133.0 million in revenue.

eBook revenues were up 3.5% as compared to the first eight months of 2023 for a total of $687.4 million. The Digital Audio format was up 26.8%, coming in at $707.1 million in revenue. Physical Audio was down 29.2% coming in at $5.8 million.

Religious Presses

August 2024

Religious press revenues were up 47.4% in August, coming in at $85.3 million. Hardback revenues were up 85.8% to $55.0 million in revenue, while Paperback revenues were up 6.1% to $15.7 million. eBook revenues were down 3.6% coming in at $4.1 million, and Digital Audio revenues were up 25.0% at $4.4 million.

Year-to-date

On a year-to-date basis, religious press revenues were up 21.2%, at $563.7 million. Hardback revenues were up 30.0% at $339.7 million in revenue, Paperback revenues were up 10.1% to $110.8 million, eBook revenues were up 2.5% at $35.8 million, and Digital Audio revenues were up 17.6% at $35.1 million.

Higher Education

During August 2024 revenues from Higher Education Course Materials were $479.9 million, down 1.2% compared with August 2023. Year-to-date Higher Education Course Materials revenues were $1.7 billion, up 4.9% compared to the first eight months of 2023.

Professional Books

Professional Books, including business, medical, law, technical and scientific, were down 0.4% during the month, coming in at $40.6 million. Year-to-date Professional Books revenues were $308.0 million, down 0.9% as compared to the first eight months of 2023.

AAP’s StatShot

AAP StatShot reports the monthly and yearly net revenue of publishing houses from U.S. sales to bookstores, wholesalers, direct to consumer, online retailers, and other channels. StatShot draws revenue data from approximately 1,280 publishers, although participation may fluctuate slightly from report to report. 

StatShot reports are designed to give ongoing revenue snapshots across publishing sectors using the best data currently available. The reports reflect participants’ most recent reported revenue for current and previous periods, enabling readers to compare revenue on both a month-to-month and year-to-year basis within a given StatShot report.

Monthly and yearly StatShot reports may not align completely across reporting periods, because: a) The pool of StatShot participants may fluctuate from report to report; and b) Like any business, it is common accounting practice for publishing houses to update and restate their previously reported revenue data. If, for example, a business learns that its revenues were greater in a given year than its reports first indicated, it will restate the revenues in subsequent reports to AAP, permitting AAP in turn to report information that is more accurate than previously reported.

Today, the Association of American Publishers (AAP) joined forces with more than 10,000 creators and coalition partners, including authors, musicians, actors, artists, and photographers, to condemn the theft of creative and intellectual authorship by big tech companies for use in their Generative AI models.  In fact, these consumer-facing models and tools would not exist without the books, newspapers, songs, performances, and other invaluable human expressions that were—and continue to be—copied, ingested, and regenerated in blatant disregard of the law. 

This is a crucial time for AI policy development globally, as authors and their publishers call on their governments and courts to uphold the most fundamental of copyright principles: Reproducing works of authorship, and creating derivatives of them, requires the clear consent of those who created, invested in, and otherwise made them possible in the first place.  

"The Association of American Publishers is proud to stand with thousands of creators and partner organizations to highlight that human authorship is the basis of Generative AI,” said Maria A. Pallante, President and CEO.   “What is true is that creators operate in service to a well-read, informed, and inspired global public, not the unsanctioned, unregulated profits of big tech companies.   It goes without saying that technology collaborations are a key part of publishing, but they are built on lawful licenses and respect, not a land grab.”

Visit global statement and signatures here:   https://www.aitrainingstatement.org 

About AAP

AAP | The Association of American Publishers represents the leading book, journal, and education publishers in the United States on matters of law and policy, advocating for outcomes that incentivize and protect works of authorship and the creative, intellectual, and financial investments that make them possible. As essential participants in local markets and the global economy, our members invest in and inspire the exchange of ideas, transforming the world we live in one word at a time. Find us online at www.publishers.org or on Twitter and Instagram at @AmericanPublish.

Trade (Consumer Book) Revenues Up 22.3% for Month of July, and Up 7.2% Year-to-Date

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today released its StatShot report for July 2024 reflecting reported revenue for Trade (Consumer Books), Religious Presses, Higher Education Course Materials, and Professional Publishing.

Total revenues across all categories for July 2024 were up 18.1% as compared to July 2023, coming in at $1.3 billion. Year-to-date revenues were up 7.6%, at $7.6 billion for the first seven months of the year.

Trade (Consumer Books) Revenues

July

Trade (Consumer Books) revenues were up 22.3% in July, coming in at $750.2 million.

In terms of physical paper format revenues during the month of July, in the Trade (Consumer Books) category, Hardback revenues were up 25.5%, coming in at $221.4 million; Paperbacks were up 17.9%, with $271.4 million in revenue; Mass Market was down 14.0% to $11.2 million; and Special Bindings were up 13.8%, with $19.4 million in revenue.

eBook revenues were up 5.1% for the month as compared to July 2023 for a total of $89.7 million, and the Digital Audio format was up 57.7% for July, coming in at $109.8 million in revenue. Physical Audio was down 37.4% coming in at $600 thousand.

Year-to-date

Year-to-date Trade revenues were up 7.2% at $5.1 billion for the first seven months of the year. Hardback revenues were up 6.6%, coming in at $1.7 billion; Paperbacks were up 5.8%, with $1.8 billion in revenue; Mass Market was down 15.3% to $73.3 million; and Special Bindings were up 6.5%, with $111.5 million in revenue.

eBook revenues were up 3.1% as compared to the first seven months of 2023 for a total of $597.0 million. The Digital Audio format was up 25.1%, coming in at $613.3 million in revenue. Physical Audio was down 23.7% coming in at $5.1 million.

Religious Presses

July

Religious press revenues were up 32.1% in July, coming in at $63.4 million. Hardback revenues were up 43.7% to $36.6 million in revenue, while Paperback revenues were up 17.1% to $13.1 million. eBook revenues were up 3.5% coming in at $3.9 million, and Digital Audio revenues were up 42.3% at $4.8 million.

Year-to-date

On a year-to-date basis, religious press revenues were up 17.5%, at $477.6 million. Hardback revenues were up 23.0% at $284.6 million in revenue, Paperback revenues were up 10.6% to $94.5 million, eBook revenues were up 3.3% at $31.7 million, and Digital Audio revenues were up 16.6% at $30.8 million.

Higher Education

During July 2024 revenues from Higher Education Course Materials were $207.5 million, up 4.6% compared with July 2023. Year-to-date Higher Education Course Materials revenues were $1.2 billion, up 7.4% compared to the first seven months of 2023. 

Professional Books

Professional Books, including business, medical, law, technical and scientific, were down 0.1% during the month, coming in at $38.2 million. Year-to-date Professional Books revenues were $267.5 million, down 1.0% as compared to the first seven months of 2023.

AAP’s StatShot

AAP StatShot reports the monthly and yearly net revenue of publishing houses from U.S. sales to bookstores, wholesalers, direct to consumer, online retailers, and other channels. StatShot draws revenue data from approximately 1,280 publishers, although participation may fluctuate slightly from report to report. 

StatShot reports are designed to give ongoing revenue snapshots across publishing sectors using the best data currently available. The reports reflect participants’ most recent reported revenue for current and previous periods, enabling readers to compare revenue on both a month-to-month and year-to-year basis within a given StatShot report.

Monthly and yearly StatShot reports may not align completely across reporting periods, because: a) The pool of StatShot participants may fluctuate from report to report; and b) Like any business, it is common accounting practice for publishing houses to update and restate their previously reported revenue data. If, for example, a business learns that its revenues were greater in a given year than its reports first indicated, it will restate the revenues in subsequent reports to AAP, permitting AAP in turn to report information that is more accurate than previously reported.

Entries Accepted from Tuesday, October 1, 2024 through Monday, November 18, 2024

The Association of American Publishers is now accepting submissions for its prestigious 2025 PROSE Awards. The submissions period will begin today, Tuesday, October 1, 2024 and last through Monday, November 18, 2024. The PROSE Awards recognize outstanding scholarly books, journals, reference works, e-products, and nonfiction graphic novels.

The awards recognize the very best professional and scholarly works published in 2024 in the United States in five official categories: Biological and Life Sciences, Humanities, Physical Sciences & Mathematics, Social Sciences, and Reference Works. All entries must have a 2024 copyright year within the book.

“We are excited to announce the entry period for the 2025 PROSE Awards,” commented Syreeta Swann, Chief Operating Officer, Association of American Publishers. “Since 1976 these awards have highlighted exceptional works in their respective fields that lift professional and scholarly publishing to new heights, and we look forward to reviewing this year’s remarkable entries.”

Entry Details for the 2025 PROSE Awards Process

The entry fee for the 2025 PROSE Awards is $115, with submissions received digitally. Publishers will be asked to submit one electronic review copy before payment. Submitters are asked to provide review copies as annotatable PDF files to facilitate notetaking by our judges. Judges may request hard copies during review. Winners will be required to provide physical copies to AAP.

Submitting publishers must be a member of either the Association of American Publishers (AAP) or the Association of University Presses (AUPresses).

Please see here for more about how to submit an entry for the 2025 PROSE Awards.

About the PROSE Awards

Since 1976, the AAP’s PROSE Awards have recognized publishers who produce books, journals, and digital products of extraordinary merit that make a significant contribution to a field of study.

For 2025, a panel of esteemed judges from throughout the academic community will review entries for overall excellence in scholarly publishing in the five subject categories. Winners from each subject category will go on to compete for the industry’s coveted R.R. Hawkins Award, the ultimate winner of the PROSE Awards competition. PROSE Award Finalists, Subject Category winners, Excellence Award winners, and the R.R. Hawkins Award winner will be announced by AAP in early 2025.

More information on the 2025 PROSE Awards can be found here.

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today awarded Januškevič Publishing House, a Belarusian publisher that now operates from Poland, the 2024 AAP International Freedom to Publish Award. The award recognizes a publisher outside of the United States who has demonstrated courage and fortitude in defending freedom of expression.

Founded in 2014 Januškevič Publishing House publishes and sells fiction, non-fiction, and historical books in the Belarusian language, activities which have become heavily discouraged by the Belarusian government under Russian influence.

In 2022, founder Andrej Januškevič was arrested for selling books in Belarusian and imprisoned for 28 days, and later that year was forced to flee to Poland, where his publishing house continued to publish materials for the Belarusian market. In 2023 Belarusian authorities revoked Januškevič’s publishing license, a move that effectively blocked the house from selling or operating as a publishing house in Belarus.

Nevertheless, readers of Belarusian can now access books published by Januškevič as eBooks in Belarus or anywhere in the world, or by purchasing physical copies of the books in Poland.

“This year we recognize a publishing house of extraordinary persistence and courage,” commented Maria A. Pallante, President and CEO, Association of American Publishers. “The leaders of Januškevič Publishing House have braved censorship, suffered incarceration, and endured exile, all in service of their mission to provide readers with literature in the Belarusian language. Together, the Board, membership, and staff of the AAP applaud Januškevič for preserving and celebrating a language that has long been under attack, and for demonstrating why the freedom to publish is an essential element of democratic society.”

“We are honored to accept AAP’s Freedom to Publish Award, and we are thankful for the acknowledgment of our work in Belarus and in exile,” commented Andrej Januškevič, Januškevič Publishing House. “The Belarusian language illuminates our culture and heritage, and together with our friends and colleagues at other houses that have seen their licenses revoked – including Limaryus, Knihazbor, Haliyafy, Medysont and Zmicier Kolas – we vow to keep that light alive in hopes that it may serve as a beacon, giving comfort to citizens of our homeland, and hope to those who must live in exile.”

Censorship in Belarus

Most independent publishing houses in Belarus were forced to close in the latter half of 2020 after heavily contested national elections that cemented the power of long-time Russian ally Alyaksandr Lukashenka. In 2020, Belarus’ authoritarian government commenced an intensified campaign of censoring publishers that promoted Belarusian identity, language, or history, or published texts in Belarusian. Currently just over a quarter of the country’s population speak Belarusian as part of their daily lives. It is now officially a vulnerable tongue according to UNSESCO (see page 37).

Belarusian Houses Denied License to Publish

The Belarusian government requires publishing houses to obtain a license to publish, but houses appear to be routinely restricted from registering or their licenses are not granted. In addition to Januškevič Publishing House, the government’s Ministry of Information revoked the licenses of fellow independent publishing houses Limaryus, Knihazbor, Haliyafy, Medysont and Zmicier Kolas.

Sample Titles from Januškevič Publishing House

“The Dogs of Europe” by Alhierd Bacharevič

Belarusian authorities branded “The Dogs of Europe” an extremist text because it was published in Belarusian, and because of perceived political symbolism.

“The Ballad of the Little Tugboat” by Joseph Brodsky, translated by Alesya Aleinik

A Belarusian court labeled “The Ballad of the Little Tugboat” – an illustrated children’s book by Joseph Brodsky, the Nobel prize winning author and former Poet Laureate of the United States – as extremist because the book had been translated into Belarusian, and because its cover bore the image of a red and white colored tugboat – the colors of the outlawed Belarusian flag.

Additional Titles

Other titles deemed extremist include the monograph “Agrarian Policy of the Nazi’s in Western Belarus” by Sviatlana Kazlova and “Mr. A's Latest Book” by Alhierd Bacharevič.

About the AAP International Freedom to Publish Award

The International Freedom to Publish Award, which was established in 2002, recognizes a publisher outside the United States who has demonstrated courage and fortitude in defending freedom of expression. The award, which includes a cash prize, was created in honor of Jeri Laber, a co-founder of Human Rights Watch and founding member of AAP’s Freedom to Publish Committee. At times, honorees may be unable to accept the award without fear of reprisal or communicate in person.

Previous recipients of the award include Venezuela-based Editorial Dahbar in 2022, Guatemala-based F&G Editores in 2021, Bangladesh-based Jagriti Publishing House in 2020; South Africa-based NB Publishers in 2019; and in 2018 Azadeh Parsapour, a London-based publisher of censored Iranian authors. In 2023, AAP awarded it to publishing houses from around the world that face a rising tide of government pressure, harassment, and threats.

About AAP

AAP | The Association of American Publishers represents the leading book, journal, and education publishers in the United States on matters of law and policy, advocating for outcomes that incentivize and protect works of authorship and the creative, intellectual, and financial investments that make them possible. As essential participants in local markets and the global economy, our members invest in and inspire the exchange of ideas, transforming the world we live in one word at a time. Find us online at www.publishers.org or on Twitter and Instagram at @AmericanPublish.