Publishers, Now Mobile Services Loving the Bible
The Bible is the best-selling book every year, beating out Harry Potter and other popular books on the shelf. As the demand for Bibles remains high, technology may attribute to a greater increase in Bible reading.
Americans purchased an estimated 25 million Bibles in 2005, The New Yorker reported. Research has found that 91 percent of American households own at least one Bible and the average household owns four.
While publishers are loving the Bible and the Christian book market shows no signs of slowing down, mobile service companies are beginning to join the best-selling stream.
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ChristianMobile, a mobile content subscription service, announced their newest partnership with the American Bible Society, a major publisher, distributor and translator of the Bible. Two versions of the English Bible as well as a Spanish version can now be downloaded on mobile phones.
"Through this creative technology, people can read the Bible's messages of inspiration, strength, courage and hope on their cell phones whenever and wherever they wish," said John Cruz, vice president of Bible publishing for the American Bible Society, in a statement.
Virtual Scripture stretches out to an international audience. ChristianMobile had partnered earlier with the Bible Society of South Africa to provide versions of the Afrikaans language Bible to mobile phone subscribers in Africa and abroad.
For the American Bible Society, this is "another way to make the Bible available," spokesperson Roy Lloyd highlighted. For America and the rest of the world, it could mean more Bible reading.
Despite the high number of Bible owners, Bible reading is still only done among less than half of American adults, the Barna Group found in an April report. On the flip side, the spiritual activity hit the highest level this year since the 1980s. Once at a 20-year low of 31 percent in 1995, reading Scripture during a typical week has increased to 47 percent of adults.
And with nearly three-quarters of Americans owning cell phones, according to a 2006 Pew Research study, more people may begin to read the Bible on a regular basis or begin reading it period.
Lloyd believes such technological adaptations will increase Bible reading. "It's portable," he said. "Instead of carrying a text with you, it's easily accessed [on your phone]."
ChristianMobile is currently opening mobile portals across the world and will be available to mobile subscribers on five continents by January, 2007.
