Those of you who use Apple iBooks or iTunes may have noticed some interesting changes now that Apple has rolled out a new version of its mobile operating system (iOS 11). Canadian publishing consultant Thad McIlroy recently posted a short message on a private industry email list we follow, describing what he interprets as a step back from the market by iBooks. When he recently updated his Windows version of iTunes, a message popped up: “iTunes has been updated to focus on music, movies, TV shows, podcasts, and audiobooks.” Meaning: McIlroy and others can’t buy ebooks via iTunes on their PCs anymore because there is no iBooks software for Windows/Android users—only for Apple users.
This is part of a broader change to iTunes that removes the iOS app store from the desktop version to reduce iTunes bloat. McIlroy comments, “Of course it doesn’t mean I can’t buy [iBooks] on my iPhone or iPad if I must, just that there’s a new hurdle to get to the most expensive ebookstore with the worst selection.” Any author who considers Apple iBooks an important source of sales should pay close attention to how these changes may affect reader behavior; it may limit readers’ ability or desire to acquire new titles through iBooks.
Books weren’t the only industry affected by the iTunes revamp; magazine publishers were also dismayed. To explain why requires going back to November 2011, when Apple launched Newsstand, which was a focused area for magazine and newspaper publications to feature their apps. Within a couple years, however, Newsstand wasn’t being maintained by Apple, and they ultimately killed it, creating instead a Magazines & Newspapers app category. Potential customers could then browse subcategories within it, such as Automotive, Brides & Weddings, Photography, etc. But with the new app store, those subcategories are gone. As DB Hebbard of Talking New Media comments, “It is as if Barnes & Noble mixed all the magazines in their store randomly on the shelf.” Hebbard adds, “Because of the way the new App Store is designed, launching a new iOS media app into any category will be like throwing a pebble into the sea, then trying to retrieve it.”
In any event, while iBooks is the number-two ebook retailer in the United States, we haven’t seen any new marketing and sales initiatives since June 2016, when they rolled out “iBooks Editions,” which are versions of popular self-published romance ebooks with bonus material unavailable elsewhere. Apple doesn’t break out earnings from iBooks, but latest figures show that Apple’s “services” sales (which include many types of digital media sales, such as apps, music, and ebooks) were up 21.6 percent from last year.
Bottom line: As McIlroy says of the shifts in emphasis at Apple and Barnes & Noble, “This is the week that Amazon can finally be declared winner of the online bookselling wars.” We agree when he concedes that Amazon has been outselling the others for some time. Now, he says, “the two remaining credible competitors,” Apple and B&N, “have both announced defeat.” However, keep in mind the big picture: Apple’s combined digital media sales are currently bigger than Amazon’s combined digital media sales. And Apple is projecting to double the size of their services business by 2020, so don’t count them out just yet.
Jane Friedman has spent her entire career working in the publishing industry, with a focus on business reporting and author education. Established in 2015, her newsletter The Bottom Line provides nuanced market intelligence to thousands of authors and industry professionals; in 2023, she was named Publishing Commentator of the Year by Digital Book World.
Jane’s expertise regularly features in major media outlets such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, NPR, The Today Show, Wired, The Guardian, Fox News, and BBC. Her book, The Business of Being a Writer, Second Edition (The University of Chicago Press), is used as a classroom text by many writing and publishing degree programs. She reaches thousands through speaking engagements and workshops at diverse venues worldwide, including NYU’s Advanced Publishing Institute, Frankfurt Book Fair, and numerous MFA programs.
