One in four books sold will be e-books by 2014, Waterstones boss says The crystal ball is particularly murky at the moment. But the number I would pluck out [for e-books" share of the book market] is around 25 per cent. It is about 10 per cent at the moment," Mr Daunt said. The deal between Britain's largest book chain and one of the world's biggest websites shocked the book industry. This was partly because Waterstones had been expected to sign a deal with Amazon's rival Barnes & Noble to sell its Nook e-reader device. However it was mainly because Mr Daunt, who founded the Daunt Books chain of bookshops in London, has been openly hostile about Amazon in the past. Speaking the The Daily Telegraph last autumn, he described Amazon as "dispiriting," "uniform," "banal" and "utterly, utterly ruthless." Elsewhere he said that the online retailer was "a money-making devil." Owners of small regional bookshops were particularly upset at the news. Roger Hickman, owner of the Mole & Haggis bookshop in Torrington in Devon, said that growing concentration of power between Waterstones and Amazon will mean that fewer people will browse in small traditional bookshops. "This is the last straw that is breaking this particular camel's back," he said. Mr Hickman is being forced to close the Mole & Haggis next month after 19 years due to increased competition from supermarkets, websites and now e-readers. "These are changing times, but not for the best," he said. Other publishing insiders said that the deal could reduce choice for shoppers because it may mean that fewer books are published. "The fewer the channels through which publishers have to sell their books, the fewer number of people are actually employed in publishing and bookselling, and ultimately it will lead to a poorer choice for customers," said one bookselling expert. However Neill Denny, editor of The Bookseller magazine, said that the deal between Waterstones and Amazon is "a landmark moment in the development of the book trade." He said: "For the high street it gives people another reason to go to Waterstones and will help sell e-readers to the more conservative Waterstones customers who may previously have not come into contact with the devices." Richard Mollet, chief executive of The Publishers Association, said that the announcement came as "something of a surprise." Clearly the tie-up will be very significant for both publishers and consumers. It will allow consumers to benefit from both physical and digital offerings at Waterstones; this may well lead to an increase in foot-fall in the high street which would be a positive outcome. However, we note that the competitive landscape in the retail market will be significantly changed by this agreement with the likelihood that Amazon's exceptionally strong position in e-book sales will be further enhanced. Ultimately, publishers hope that the agreement presents the opportunity to drive sales of e-books and enhance reader choice," he said. Figures released earlier this year by Nielsen BookScan showed that sales of traditional paper novels slumped over the first two months of 2012. Britons bought 7.6 million novels in January and February, almost two and a half million fewer than they bought in the opening weeks of 2011. Meanwhile an estimated 1.33 million e-readers were sold in the UK last Christmas alone. One in 40 adults were estimated to have received a Kindle over the festive period.