The Rakuten Kobo reading habit survey in 2023 provides us with some interesting insight into the reading habits of users such as the amount of time they spend reading or the sort of book they prefer to read, and so on. As ChinaTimes reported, the survey has revealed that 54 percent of the readers spend less than 1 hour a week reading, with only 23 percent reading more than 16 hours on a weekly basis. This makes for sort of a mixed scenario where you have readers who read a lot along with those who are just the opposite.
Saturday has also emerged as the favorite day of the week for most to indulge in reading. Fridays and Sundays are the other days that readers prefer to read. The survey also revealed it is 11 at night which is the preferred time to read for most. Coming to the actual book purchases, those who have bought 1 – 10 books make up 32 percent of those surveyed. Interestingly, it’s again 32 percent who have gone on to purchase 11 – 20 books. With both groups, around 75 percent of all their book purchases are in digital form. This makes for a 4 percent growth in e-book purchases over the previous year.
Coming to the spending pattern, about 27 percent of the book purchases are worth 2,000 and 3,000 yuan on a yearly basis. Similarly, those who have spent 1,000 to 2,000 yuan make up 26 percent of those polled while the majority 50 percent of the readers spend an average of 1,000 to 3,000 yuan on book purchases every year.
As for the choice of books that readers preferred to read in 2022, Rakuten Kobo revealed literary novels enjoyed 58 percent readership, with business and financial management accounting books making up the second spot at 50 percent. Thereafter, it is psychological and inspirational books that have been read by 44 percent of readers and have actually seen their popularity grow. In contrast, the top two segments have witnessed a dip in their popularity.
Coming to audiobooks, the survey also revealed 23 percent of readers have opted for the audio version of the books. The preferred time for most to listen to audiobooks is while in bed followed by during commuting on public transportation, walking, or doing other things.
Kobo further revealed their membership count has gone up by 21 percent. They are also expecting a 34 percent growth in their collection of Chinese language books, which likely will make it past 200,000 for the first time. They are also in the process of launching a new store named Lakuten Kobo E-Book.
With a keen interest in tech, I make it a point to keep myself updated on the latest developments in technology and gadgets. That includes smartphones or tablet devices but stretches to even AI and self-driven automobiles, the latter being my latest fad. Besides writing, I like watching videos, reading, listening to music, or experimenting with different recipes. The motion picture is another aspect that interests me a lot, and I'll likely make a film sometime in the future.
