Fewer readers but more willing to spend money? Academy of Cultural Studies draws increasing scrutiny against Taiwan’s cultural consumption “pay rate” trend

With the rise of AI, the international community believes that mankind has entered the “post-reading era” and reading has become a typical hobby. The Academy of Cultural Studies released the “2025 Taiwan Cultural Content Consumption Trend Survey” last week and found that although Taiwan’s overall reading rate continues to decline, reader payment rates have bucked this trend and increased. More than 30% of paying readers of books, magazines and comics spend 400 yuan (Taiwan dollars, the same amount below, about US$12.3) per month. The research team suggested that with the support of core consumers, “niche sophistication” and “heavy readership management” are possible future directions for the publishing industry.

The survey reports that the reading rate (reading or finishing at least one book in a year) will continue to decline in 2025, from 84% in 2020 to 75% in 2025, and the number of daily readers is about 10%. Fortunately, the reader payment rate of overall published works has increased from 43% in 2020 to 52% in 2025, contrary to the trend.

In terms of paper books, 34% of paying readers of paper books spend more than 400 yuan per month, which is equivalent to buying a new book every month. In terms of age group, purchase rates increased among those aged 15 to 29, but declined slightly among the customer group aged 30 to 49. Although the price of comics is low, 15% of readers spend more than 600 yuan per month.

In the past, the industry was concerned that due to the prevalence of piracy, people would not develop the habit of paying for e-books. However, the latest survey suggests that the payment rate of e-books has gradually increased from 19% in 2023 to 27% in 2025. E-book readers emerged last year, and tablet reading use has gradually increased. However, at this stage, e-book reading is still mainly done on mobile phones and computers. The research team suggests that e-book reader manufacturers consolidate the interface and reading modes of multiple devices.

The survey reported that not only has the payment rate of paper and electronic reading increased, but the payment participation rate of podcasts, pop music performances, and performing arts also continues to increase. Specifically, the overall public payment rate for performing arts activities will increase from 17% in 2021 to 45% in 2025. Among paying audiences, 10% spend more than 500 yuan per year, with the average amount ranging from 1,500 yuan to 2,000 yuan. It is clear that Taiwanese people have developed the concept of paying for art consumption.