The percentage of distributed newsstand copies that were actually sold. Average sell-through for the industry has fallen to about 38 percent, compared to 55 percent in the mid-'80s.
The quantity of books actually sold at bookstores (as opposed to the quantity merely shipped). A publisher may ship ten thousand copies of a book to booksellers and get back, say, six thousand in returns. In this case, the sell-through would be four thousand.
The sell-through is an indicator of how fast retailers are selling a particular product to the consumer.
The number of copies of an issue of a magazine distributed to retail outlets that are actually sold.
In publishing, Sell-through refers to a percentage of units shipped which are actually sold. In the case of books, the rest is returned to the publisher. Other items, such as software, are usually discounted.