About a fifth of American adults have read an ebook in the past year, a figure likely helped along by the recent holiday surge in the sale of tablet and e-reader devices, according to a report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project.
Before the holidays last year, 17 percent of adults had read an ebook in the previous year. That number jumped to 21 percent after the holiday.
E-book readers are more voracious than non-e-book readers, the study found. E-book readers read an average of 24 books over the previous year, whereas those who read paper-based books averaged 15 books.
The Pew study also noted that 30 percent of device owners claim to be spending more time reading with their tablets and e-reader devices.
The Pew report also notes that avid readers are nonetheless reading in all formats, print and electronic. For instance, 59 percent of e-reader owners said they were still reading printed books.
For more on the report, here's the Pew site.
