by theone on 1/1/13, 8:25 AM with 12 comments
by petercooper on 1/1/13, 1:55 PM
A case in point that I read in the Sunday Times a few days ago is Igloo Books - http://igloobooks.com/ - their revenue is climbing rapidly (>$30m last year) and they focus on print (I believe they were only founded in 2003). They're thriving because the lower quality end of the market is hurting. Fiction is rapidly moving to digital but for both high quality and art-rich publications, there's now more space available to them in retail. Igloo, for example, now has excellent placement in retail in a way they couldn't have achieved 10 years ago. Like Igloo, there are many "traditional" publishers that are really anything but.. but they're still print oriented and doing well for it.
In the magazine scene, at least here in Europe, a common vibe right now is that digital distribution will perhaps wipe out 90% of the print run but that the remaining 10% will be a thriving higher quality industry that's different but not destroyed.
Here in the UK, frequent visitors to newsagents and stores like Tesco may have also noticed a trend on the newsstand of children's magazines and periodicals taking over an increasingly larger space. This is no accident. With the ability to offer small toys on the cover, stickers inside, and with a very art-driven aesthetic, print really suits these publications and the childrens' magazine scene is blowing up, in a good way (some easy citations: http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2012/aug/16/moshi-monsters-s... http://babbleabout.co.uk/2012/04/23/childrens-magazines-gett... http://www.fipp.com/news/PPA-says-UK-ABC-figures-show-sustai...).
Fewer TV guides, less fiction, less crap.. and more stuff that deserves to be in print. It's still happening.
(Added: Magazine addict Jean Snow seems to have some similar thoughts - http://themagaziner.com/2013/01/magazines-in-2013/)
by sown on 1/1/13, 8:56 AM
Very similar to what Valve is doing.
Now that books are more flexible in their distribution channels like software, what other things could publishers do? Downloadable content for books in the form of new chapters? Embedded animated diagrams or quizes? Interactive content, like a printed version of Sleep No More (http://sleepnomorenyc.com/tickets.htm) ? Code environment simulators like we so often nowadays on websites that teach you how to program? DIY-Language books that harass you to read them if you slack off in reading them enough?
by charonn0 on 1/1/13, 8:31 AM
by johnrgrace on 1/1/13, 7:58 PM
Publishing companies are all B2B companies with most publisher brands meaning very little to readers, but a lot to their retailer partners. Unlike most consumer goods, books are returnable to the publishers for a full refund if not sold which has been the glue keeping publishers and booksellers workign together since the 1930's.
Publishers were tied to their partners and couldn't walk away from them to go after new opportunities. Further, the "culture" of the industry is such that everyone leading it grew up in publishing so many players never even saw what was happening because they knew how the world worked.
by miahi on 1/1/13, 3:24 PM
This is not new and it existed before the e-book publishing started to grow. I remember reading a digital edition of the Lord of the Rings 15 years ago. Found it on the 'net. Somebody OCRed the paperback. This is still happening.
What helps the publishers is that with the new reading devices it's easier to buy an original e-book than pirate it. What doesn't help them is that many times the original e-book you buy is actually worse than the one OCRed by the fans. I saw original e-books that lack images or they offer only low-res versions, while the pirated one looks better and contains every image at high resolution.
by lucian303 on 1/1/13, 9:59 AM
Yes, that is sad. Or even lending (looking at you Amazon!). Nevertheless, e-books have done to publishing what mp3s and online video has done to the record labels / movie studios.
It's basically killed them, yet they are still running around with zombies waiting for that headshot to put them down for good.
E-books are here to stay and publishers, just like record labels, are useless as one can now establish a firm and successful marketing campaign mostly through the web.
Self-publishing may not kill e-books by publishers but has killed not only their monopoly, but also their whole business model.
Welcome to 2013. Accept it or zombify. Or better yet,
die;