Russ Grandinetti's speech, 'To Help Publishers Optimize E-book Sales', coincided with the launch of Kindle Singles on Amazon's Kindle store. The singles are 5,000-30,000 'killer idea' pieces from the likes of bestselling authors like Jodi Picoult as well as academics and journalists. They are priced between 99 cents and $4.99.

Speaking during the final afternoon of Digital Book World, Grandinetti said it was “not uncommon” for Kindle sales “to be 20-30-40-50-80% of a BookScan number” in 2010. Several executives from major houses later said that especially for their biggest Christmas titles, they could confirm seeing this trend borne out. Grandinetti added: “However fast you think change is happening, it’s happening faster than you think.”

The Bookseller