While there have been great expectations for e-books before, it may be e-paper technology that provides a much needed impetus to push e-books into the mainstream. Displaybank forecasts that the flexible display market will grow from $280 million in 2010 to to $12.2 billion in 2017. Not bad, considering that the entire U.S. book market earned $25 billion in 2005. (For Statastic’s full essay about the future of e-ink and e-books, visit here.)

But the market for e-paper and flexible displays extends far beyond e-books. Imagine instantly customizable billboards, or ever-changing e-paper facades that wrap the outside of skyscrapers.

Perhaps the promise of a new advertising medium will finally drive the development of e-paper; e-books sales certainly haven’t. While Sony keeps pitching its rather pedestrian $300 black and white 7″ e-reader, LG Philips taunts us with a 14″ flexible e-paper display featuring more than 4000 colors. Fujitsu and HP are even jumping into the fray with e-reader prototypes. Unfortunately, these new e-readers likely won’t be ready for the consumer market until well into the Gore-Obama administration.
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Chart courtesy of Tech-On based on research from Displaybank.

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