Little growth seen for publishers

As publishers pray for a new children’s series to equal Harry Potter and await the next novel by “The Da Vinci Code” author Dan Brown, a report released Friday predicts a tight market for at least the next few years.

The Book Industry Study Group, a nonprofit organization supported by the publishing industry, projects a 3% to 4% growth through 2011, when revenue should top $43 billion. The BISG expects little change in the actual number of books sold.

“The hits will keep doing well, but other books will have troubles,” said BISG senior researcher Albert N. Greco, a professor of marketing at the Fordham University Graduate School of Business.