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publishers are sticking more to traditional eBooks than
interactive story apps. (To be sure, standard eBooks are
available in digital bookstores, such as the iBookstore,
while book apps are sold in app stores and include more
interactive features.)
“We all ran to the app as fast as we could, but discovered
that they are expensive to make, Apple promotes very
few of them, and buying ad space doesn’t generally work,”
says Helman. She adds that of the “big six” US publishing
houses, the number of licensed book apps being published
has decreased by 75%.
Still, HarperCollins has seen digital book app sales rising
quickly for popular brands such as Big Nate. The gaming
app developed by Night & Day Studios is based on the bestselling
book, and Helman says the early success of the app
coincides with the popularity of the printed Big Nate titles.
Helman also believes that kids and young adult eBooks
are getting shorter. She says serialized novels and shorter,
150-page per title, series are almost always standard for
the tween and teen demos because they cost less and are
more easily consumed. In fact, Helman says she is seeing
the strongest rise in eBook sales among the teen and tween
segment, although the latter hasn’t experienced the same
device penetration. And in terms of digital picture books
for young kids, which HarperCollins commissions thirdparty
developers to make, less than 2% of the market is
digital. “In general, your e-sales are about 5% to 10% of
print books. These numbers are true for children’s overall,
but teen is more like 30%,” she says. “The fastest growth is
happening among six- to 12-year-olds, but the majority of
sales are happening in teen.”
Even though the numbers are rising, “the physical book
is still driving everything,” says Jon Anderson, president
and publisher of Simon & Schuster’s children’s division.
Scholastic’s Kids & Family Reading Report also showed that
a full 80% of kids who read eBooks still read books for fun
primarily in print.
Anderson says S&S’s most successful kids eBooks to
date are titles that have been the most successful in print,
which include the female-skewing Cassandra Clare series
and Dork Diaries titles. (He says girls books almost always
outsell boys books.) “We will adapt from the physical book
where appropriate. But parents view apps and physical
books as separate things—apps tend to be seen more as
games and not reading.”
Still, zuuka’s Graham Farrar thinks the continued proliferation
of mobile devices will cause digital book consumption
to rise significantly more this year. “Tablets only hold a
25% market penetration in the US. I think the iPad Mini, for
instance, is a better device for kids books than a Tom Clancy
novel. It has bright colors, interactivity and sound effects,”
he says. “I think once more people get their hands on the
devices, and see what can be done with digital storytelling, it
will be enormous.”
TechWatch Keeping an eye on the gadget scene
The app that loves kids back
What it is
Designed to help children with sensory processing challenges such as
autism or ADHD, the T. Jacket is putting an undeniably positive spin on
the mobile-product integration trend. The tablet-powered T.Jacket is
a wearable jacket with a corresponding smartphone app that triggers
levels of pressure to the body—thereby simulating a hug.
How it works
Using patent-pending haptic technology, T.Jacket is powered
by embedded air bags that are activated wirelessly and allow for
variable pressure. The deep pressure therapy produced by the
jacket is meant to produce a calming effect and increase attention.
And the T.Cloud technology also allows parents to monitor when
and where the jacket is being worn.
What it means
While initially meant for children with special needs, the product
could very well find itself in the hands—or arms—of parents and
kids who are apart for extended periods. With a pre-order price
tag of US$399, there is likely little room for novelty, but the fact
that touchscreens are literally simulating human touch means
that similar technologies could soon be harnessed for more
entertainment purposes. –Wendy Goldman Getzler
May/June 2013
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