BERLIN, June 7 (Xinhua) -- Stress in modern day life and declining function of books as topics of conversation are causes behind the decrease of book buyers in Germany, according to a survey result published by the German Publishers and Booksellers Association (Boersenverein) on Thursday.

Although sales in the book industry have remained stable over the last fifteen years, the number of book buyers is decreasing in Germany, according to the association.

Between 2013 and 2017, the number of buyers in the consumer book market (excluding textbooks) fell by 6.4 million, a decrease of 17.8 percent, according to the survey.

Fewer buyers are also reflected in falling sales. In 2017, 367 million books were sold in the market, compared to 398 million in 2013, according to the Boersenverein.

The survey found, on the one hand, people feel under pressure amid fast pace of modern day life, and overwhelmed in the multitasking society, as a result, a lack of time and energy makes book-reading less and less.

On the other hand, the position of books is increasingly taken over by TV series. While TV series can be viewed together with others and provide the opportunity to talk to others the next day, books are no longer "a big topic of conversation".

In the past year, 29.6 million Germans still bought at least one book, which is equivalent to 44 percent of German residents over the age of 10.

Alexander Skipis. Chief Executive of the Boersenverein, said, "It is no longer enough to wait for customers to come to the book. The book has to come to the customer, and for that the industry has to find new strategies. "