Sales of eBook readers are set to top 6.6 million globally this year, according to Gartner.
That's an 80% jump from 2009 sales of 3.6 million, the analyst firm said, predicting the market will grow by 68% to top 11 million next year.
The stats don't include the use of tablets to read eBooks, however, with Gartner warning that eReader prices must remain low in order to fend off "cannibalisation" from the iPad and its slate rivals.
"We think few end users will buy both an eReader and a media tablet, so it is important that eReaders retain a price advantage," said Allen Weiner, research vice president at Gartner.
"With media tablets offering more functionality, eReader vendors need to target avid readers who may see the value of a standalone device that performs particularly well," he said, adding that eBook reader manufacturers face smaller profit margins.
Gartner said content providers could subsidise devices to keep eBook reader costs down. While such a tactic may not be driven by book publishers, which are largely agnostic on devices, it could be an option for retailers such as Amazon, which sells both eBooks and devices.
This article originally appeared at pcpro.co.uk
