Almost half of all publishers surveyed in this year's Digital Census by The Bookseller and FutureBook have said they believe they will be making more money from digital content than print books by the end of 2020.
The survey found that 48.2% of responding publishers predict digital sales will be worth more than 50% of their turnover by 2020‚ a hardening of confidence in digital since last year's Digital Census, when less than a third (31.4%) of publishers thought it would be the case.
The poll confirms publishers' digital sales have continued to soar in 2012. More than two in five (42.3%) publishers say digital accounted for more than 10% of their total sales in 2012, a big leap from the number making the claim in 2010 (17.6%) and 2011 (28.7%).
The finding chimes with reports from leading publishers this year that digital sales are now well into double-digits as a proportion of turnover. By the end of next year, nearly two-thirds (62.6%) of publishers think digital will account for more than 10% of sales.
Publishers' migration to digital formats is nearly complete, the survey found. The vast majority (95.7%) of respondents from publishing say their company now sells content in at least one digital format‚ leaving fewer than one in 20 still operating solely in print. The proportion of digital-ready publishers compares to 85.3% in the 2010 Digital Census.
The full results will be revealed at the FutureBook Conference on 3rd December, and the Digital Census 2013 will be available to buy in the following week, or to pre-order next week.