A recent study by Attributor found that eBook piracy is on the rise. We’re hoping that publishers will embrace the new format aggressively and flood the market with viable, purchasable alternatives instead of backstepping like the music industry did with the RIAA and related stupidity. When a market is pirated, it means that there is demand. Make it easier for people to find your book legitmately than otherwise.
Key findings from the recent study include:
* 50 percent increase in online searches for pirated downloads throughout the past year
* 1.5-3 million daily Google queries for pirated e-books
* 20 percent increase in demand for pirated downloads since the iPad became widely available in mid-May 2010
* 54 percent increase in pirated e-book demand since August 2009
* Proliferation of smaller sites that host and supply pirated e-books – a shift from larger sites like Rapidshare dominating the syndication market
* “Breaking Dawn” by Stephanie Meyer registered the most pirated copy searches throughout the study
* Widespread international demand, with the largest number of searches during the study originated in the United States (11 percent), India (11 percent) and Mexico (5 percent)
All the more reason, too, to protect your eBook with DRM when you publish it.
