As others have pointed out, I don't think we have all the right data to really make conclusions, especially in a historical context here. But if the trend is ex

As others have pointed out, I don't think we have all the right data to really make conclusions, especially in a historical context here. But if the trend is exactly what the title is implying, I wonder if social networks are a contributing factor here and amplifying virality: more of the people who read are sharing / discussing what they're reading, and that's influencing more people to then go and read the same thing. Fewer people going and browsing the entire selection to pick out something they want to read. I'm reading (well, listening to audiobooks) more than ever, but indeed I'm selecting things that are already significant topics for conversation, or books that were already made into movies (and thus are also popular). Beyond that, I'm consuming podcasts, etc. and things with business models closer to that the author is suggesting.