In the year following the exit of Borders, online retailers—led by Amazon—captured 44% of book dollars in 2012, up from 39% in 2011, according to the 2013 U.S. Book Consumer Demographics and Buying Behaviors Annual Review.

Prepared by Bowker Market Research and Publishers Weekly, the study also found that bookstore chains held less than 20% share last year. While Barnes & Noble remained the second-largest book-selling outlet, it depended more on sales of print books in 2012 than it did in 2011, with consumer e-book spending the chain declining from 6% in 2011 to 4% last year.

E-books continuing a steady upward trend, with an 11% share of spending in 2012, compared to 7% in 2011.

"The review reveals the larger industry impact of the growth of e-books," said Jo Henry, director of Bowker Market Research. "This is more than simply a format change. E-books are driving powerful behavioral changes among book buyers. The review captures those trends, providing greater ability to predict and prepare in a very dynamic landscape."

Among other findings of the review included: fiction e-books, particularly in the mystery/detective, romance and science fiction categories, accounting for more than 20% of 2012 spending; and traditional print book output growing 3% last year, from 292,037 titles in 2011 to 301,642 in 2012.

The review, which polled almost 70,000 Americans who bought books of any format and from any source in 2012, also revealed that women increased their lead over men in book buying, accounting for 58% of book spending in 2012, up from 55% in 2011.

For more information on the review, visit www.bookconsumer.com.

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