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The Changing Landscape of Publishing
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Should information be free? We’re used to paying for newspapers, magazines and books, specialized information previously available only via some form of hardcopy. Today, the Internet not only makes such information more accessible, it also provokes questions about whether information, or specifically, what types, should be free vs. paid. Who doesn’t want something for free? But really, the bigger question is what is the future of publishing?
Traditional models for sharing information, or content, are dying. New business models that allow for content sharing while providing a means of earning revenue are a the big dilemma for today’s information businesses.
Futurist, strategist, author and blogger Gerd Leonhard travels the world speaking about the future of media. Last year, in a presentation in Istanbul, Turkey, Leonhard declared content sharing the heart of the new business model. He referred to the Internet as “giant copy machine” where content is shared and where what used to be paid will now free. (Mr. Leonard’s full, 60 slide presentation may be viewed here.
What will be the sustainable business model for publishing in the Internet age? This is the key question behind the Google lawsuit, wherein Google is being sued for making available the full text of books for free, a suit that began three years ago and most recently received yet another postponement in court.
It’s the question inquiring readers want to know, and the driver behind the fight for dominance in e-book reader manufacturing. Readers and publishers alike wonder what the right price is for an e-book, a product which presumably has lower overhead than a physical book. Cautious buyers ask whether they should splurge on a dedicated e-reader like the Kindle or wait for the dust to settle in the growing e-reader technology fight? Just this year, there have been announcements from Sony, Plastic Logic, and iRex about open platform e-readers, as these manufacturers try to shake the market foothold of Amazon. Should these manufacturers include wireless connectivity and other features that make the buying, reading, and possibly sharing of e-books easier? What’s the right timing for an e-book release while the physical book is still selling? What’s the right royalty rate of the authors?
What about the use of free, online reads? Should authors and publishers consider using freebies to attract readers? Publishing giant Hachette has been making the full text of selected books available as a means of promoting new titles and attracting new readers. More and more, authors are expected to bear a bigger slice of the marketing responsibility for their books, and as a result, are becoming more marketing savvy, like author Amy Corrigan who was recently highlighted in the Washington Post for her creative book marketing efforts. Authors are creating digital book trailers, mapping out their own book tours, both real and virtual, developing websites, blogging, building platforms, and more. Should free reads be a part of the package?
And what does the digital era mean to newspapers and magazines? President Obama expressed the need for traditional investigative journalism, but also indicated the need for a new business model. What are readers willing to pay to read in the digital age?
Publishers, editors, agents, booksellers, distributors, authors, and even readers are weighing in on these issues. Literary agent Janet Kobobel Grant recently hosted a multi-post discussion about the notion of free vs. paid in publishing via her agency’s blog. In a panel discussion at New York University’s Center for Publishing, Alan Murray, deputy managing editor and executive online editor of the Wall Street Journal, said that the one thing his organization did right was to not give the full newspaper away online.
The publishing landscape is changing daily. It will take time for the answers to unfold. Some compare what is happening in publishing to what happened in the music industry with file sharing and downloading. Book piracy is an issue, but I believe, the publishing dilemma is a bit different. In most cases, readers don’t typically read a book more than once. And even when they designate a book a “keeper”, they’re not likely to re-read very often. Readers also share books all the time, giving them to friends and family or even selling them on eBay when they are done with them.
I think what is happening with publishing is more like what happened in the telecommunication industry. With the competition spawned by the breakup of AT&T and the birth of cellular technology, the phone industry as we knew it completely changed. Sure, many phone users still have landline telephones. There are places, like businesses and even the government, where the secured technology is preferable. At the same time, cell phones have proliferated so much that other old stalwarts, like payphones, have all but disappeared. As cell technology matures, developments like phone number portability and downloadable apps have made the use of a cell phone much more attractive, and spawning a whole new set of content providers. With these apps, phones are not far from being miniature computers, yet there will remain a need for larger systems, if only for health reasons and ease of use.
I anticipate similar changes in the world of publishing. E-readers will offer more functionality than simply book reading. Some of what is paid content today eventually will be available for free, but consumers will always pay for specialized content like books. It will be a matter of the delivery mechanism, ease of use, and portability. In publishing, change is happening, and it promises to be an amazing ride.
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