More of us now read ebooks on our mobile phones

Mobile phone reading is on the rise as increasing numbers of us use the devices to read ebooks on the go, a new study has found.

According to the study by OnePoll for Publishing Technology, 43% of consumers have read an ebook, or part of an ebook, using a phone, with 59% of mobile book readers in the UK currently read more on their phones than they did last year. Younger people are particularly likely to do so, with 23% of 18 to 24 year olds who read on their mobiles now doing it on a daily basis.

The study, which assessed the views of 3,000 participants from across the USA and UK, also found that Apple’s iPhone is first choice for UK consumers when reading, with 40% of people who read on their mobiles using the popular smartphone. Samsung comes in at second place, with 28% using a Samsung handset to read.

However, while the general trend shows this form of reading to be on the rise, it’s still being met with some resistance. When consumers across the US and UK who do not read ebooks on their mobile phones were asked why they did not, 40% of respondents cited inconvenience as the reason, 33% found it to be a generally unpleasant reading experience, and 31% felt they already overused their mobile. The platforms currently available for reading from a mobile phone (eg. Kindle, iBooks, Nook) were also deemed unsatisfactory by 24% of respondents.

Michael Cairns, CEO of Publishing Technology, commented: ‘The mobile’s rise in popularity among readers tells a significant story about the future of book reading. However technology providers and manufacturers would be wise to take note of consumers’ dissatisfaction with certain elements of the user experience that apply to reading on mobiles.

‘As phablets become more widespread and platforms develop the mobile reading experience, we can expect mobile phone book reading to continue to grow rapidly in the years to come,’ he added.

While gadgets such as Amazon’s Kindle and Tesco’s Hudl are designed with reading longer volumes in mind, this study reveals that a significant percentage of people don’t mind reading from a smaller screen, either. But studies have shown that the quantity of information retained from reading from tablets and similar gadgets is much lower than when reading from a paper book, raising questions about whether this type of reading is worthwhile.

The full results of the Publishing Technology study can be viewed here.

Image via epSos .de at Flickrcc