Online Sales of Books Especially Important for Non-Russian Peoples in Russia

Paul Goble

            Staunton, June 24 – During the first quarter of this year, one in four books in foreign, national or ancient languages was purchased by people living in Russian towns with populations of less than 50,000, places where such books are not available in local bookshops, many of which have closed, and that means that online sales are especially important.

            Over this period, Kommersant reports, demand for books in Udmurt, Mari and Vepsy more than tripled, a sign not only that online sales are especially important to such communities but that despite expectations to the contrary, hard copy books remain in demand despite the rise in electronic versions (kommersant.ru/doc/8760489).

            Measured by the amount of money spent on them, books  retain their dominance in the Russian book market, although such a measure overstates their significant overall because hard copy books in almost all cases cost more than electronic versions; but the Moscow paper insists that hard copy books have retained their niche.

            According to Irina Antonova of the Alpina publishing group, “for the past few years, the Russian book market has exhibited a curious paradox: the total number of titles is rising and the average print runs are falling, but the average prices are increasing,” something that suggests there will be demand for hard copy books well into the future.

            One reason for that pattern, she and others in the publishing industry say, is that young adults now dominate the market for hard copy books, care especially about the physical qualities of the publications, and see books as something of an investment for the long term at a time when there are few others they feel confident will rise in value.

            Konstantin Anokhin of Kommersant concludes: “The printed book has neither defeated digital services nor lost out to them; instead, it has carved out its own niche alongside them. Digital formats do offer speed and convenient access to content, whereas the printed book offers something else.”

Specifically, he continues, they give purchasers “the chance to immerse oneself more deeply in a subject, build a personal library, derive aesthetic pleasure from the physical volume itself, or share the reading experience with others. Consequently, the question of the printed book’s survival is no longer a pressing issue.”

That appears to be especially true in non-Russian regions.