Amazon has revealed that UK consumers are buying more ebooks for its Kindle reader than print books on its retail website

Amazon has revealed that UK consumers are buying more ebooks for its Kindle reader than print books on its retail website

Amazon, who manufacture the Kindle reader, say that the retail website has sold 114 ebooks for every 100 printed books, and that this number includes the sales of harcover and paperback books where no Kindle edition is available.

The site also reports that consumers who have bought a Kindle by four times the amount of books they did prior to owning the device. 

Kindle EU vice president, Jorrit Van der Meulen said: “Customers in the UK are now choosing Kindle books more often than print books, even as our print business continues to grow. We hit this milestone in the US less than four years after introducing Kindle, so to reach this landmark after just two years in the UK is remarkable and shows how quickly UK readers are embracing Kindle.”

“As a result of the success of Kindle, we’re selling more books than ever before on behalf of authors and publishers. And thanks to Kindle Direct Publishing, thousands of self-published authors have also been given an outlet to share their work with the millions of Kindle readers worldwide.”

The Kindle was launched in the UK in 2010 and has proven a hit with readers and writers alike. Authors who have not signed with any publishers can self publish their in ebook format and can earn up to 70 per cent royalties from the books they sell. The biggest selling ebook on the Kindle this year is the erotic novel by EL James, "Fifty Shades Of Grey", which sold more than 2 million copies in just four months.