It's not linear, stupid

We tend to believe that the evolution of ereader devices will be a straight line, as in more and more people prefer tablets to ereaders, so tablets may replace ereaders. Maybe not. Maybe the choice of devices is more like the choice of genres in reading, diverse and non-linear and uncompetitive. The annual Bowker Market Group study, called the Book Industry Study Group's "Consumer Attitudes Towared E-Book Reading survey", reports that ". . . those who prefer dedicated e-readers were more likely to select general fiction, mystery, literary fiction, or romance as key e-book genres than users of other types of devices. How-to guides and manuals were more popular with those who prefer reading e-books on personal computers. Consumers who prefer e- reading via smartphones were more likely to read travel books than either tablet or dedicated e-reader users." You may not be able to tell a book by its cover, but you may be able to tell a reader by his or her device.