Positive signals for the Italian publishing industry so far in 2026: in the first nine months the trade market, namely print fiction and non-fiction sold in physical bookstores, online and in supermarkets, grew by 3.2% in value, with total sales totaling 1,026.5 million euros, and by 2.7% in copies, for 69.8 million books sold.
The Effects of the Library Bonus
As emphasized by Innocenzo Cipolletta, the president of the Italian Publishers Association, “the market benefited from the library bonus of 60 million euros, with growth rates sustained especially between February and June. But the positive effects of the bonus go far beyond these numbers in terms of support and promotion of reading across the country, with particular attention, as requested by the Minister of Culture Alessandro Giuli, to disadvantaged areas. For this reason, it is important that the measure be confirmed and stabilized for future years.”
The data compiled by NielsenIQ BookData Panel Market Libri Italia will be discussed and explored at the Frankfurter Buchmesse on October 7 at 11:00, on the occasion of the inauguration of Space Italia. The Italian collective stand organized by ICE – Agenzia in collaboration with the Associazione Italiana Editori is located this year in Hall 3.1 – Stand B134 and B102. Italian exhibitors at the Frankfurt Book Fair (editorial groups, publishing houses not affiliated with groups, literary agents) number 134, of which 66 are present at Space Italia.
The Report on the State of the Publishing Industry
After the ribbon-cutting, together with the most recent data from the trade market, the State of the Publishing Industry Report will be presented, prepared by the AIE research office, featuring figures for the entire sector and the trend in the sale and purchase of translation rights in 2025.
Participants will include Cipolletta, Massimo Darchini, Consul General of Italy in Frankfurt, and Ferdinando Fiore, Director of the ICE – Agenzia Berlin Office.
Sono inoltre October 7, dalle 14.30 alle 15.30, nel Dialogue Networking Area, Foyer Hall 4.0, si terrà l’incontro “What’s next for accessible publishing? AI, new tools & old challenges” a cura di Fondazione LIA, no-profit founded by AIE and the Italian Union of the Blind, in collaboration with Börsenverein des Deutschen Buchhandels and Frankfurter Buchmesse.
