Assignment 1 - Books in the Digital Age (PSPB 251)

In the reading from Week 1, Chapter 1 from Books in the Digital Age by John B. Thompson, the author describes these value-add activities of traditional (print-based) publishers:
1. Content acquisition and list building
2. Financial investment and risk-taking
3. Content development
4. Quality control
5. Management and coordination
6. Sales and marketing

QUESTION 1: Consider this list with respect to digital publishing.

a. What, if anything, is missing from this list?

My first instinct is to say one area that is missing from this list or that requires more attention when it comes to digital publishing would be Ethics.
There are a number of ethical questions that are raised with the availability and dissemination of information on the Internet, of which making books available online is one area that stirs this pot.

When it comes to Ethics and Quality control, it is key that copyright clearance and the protection of content is given even greater attention to protect the text against piracy. With the availability of so much on the Internet, it is important that steps are made to ensure the integrity of the book is maintained and digitally distributed correctly.

I’m not sure whether there is anything else missing, per se; I do however think that some of these value-add activities have a greater scope when it comes to digital publishing. Take Sales and marketing as an example. Traditional marketing, like newspaper and television advertising, is both extremely costly and difficult to measure.

With digital marketing, the opportunities to promote a book online are exponentially greater. They include strategies like:
* Email marketing
* Google Adwords campaigns and sponsored links (mirrored in other search engines, like Yahoo etc)
* Blogging
* Social networking (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn)
* Newsletter programs
* Search engine optimisation

Online promotion of digitally produced books gives the publisher the advantage of cost effective marketing that can be tracked, easily adjusted and both quantitatively and qualitatively measured. While these channels are being used at present to promote the traditional, printed book, a move to the digital environment for the product itself will mean that the balance of online and traditional marketing for the digital book will be significantly skewed towards the former.

b. Are there any activities that no longer apply?

Content acquisition and list building will always be a key component of book publishing/production, whether digitally produced or otherwise. So too is Quality control, although this function will comprise different or altered efforts (i.e. less focus on some links and the addition of new ones to the chain).

Conversely, I think Financial investment and risk-taking seems to be shaken by the onset of digital publishing.

There are two stages in the traditional publishing cycle that seem to require key financial decisions, which may fade away with the advent of the digital book. (1) According to Jim Thompson, setting initial prices and print-runs for a book is a definite financial risk. As there is no print run for digital books, this eliminates much of this concern. Dealing with back orders or feeling that the price is not quite right is no longer an issue – back orders don’t exist and prices can always be changed. (2) In addition, the decision to reprint has financial implications for the traditional publisher – but alas, digital publishing requires no printing and therefore eliminates this financial hazard.

Other financial risks that no longer concern the digital publisher: the length of the publishing cycle and the reliance on booksellers and wholesalers to bridge the gap between the publisher and the consumer.

When it comes to Management and coordination, roles and links in the traditional publishing chain are certainly limited as things move more digital. Tasks like typesetting, printing and binding, warehousing and distribution, wholesaling etc seem to no longer have a place in the age of digital books – as Jim Thompson puts it, the publisher may have to ‘disintermediate’ these functions as it becomes more and more clear that they are obsolete. Yet as it is still a business with quite a few steps and players involved in the production of the final product (whether that is pages on paper or pages on screen), management and coordination will always be required.

As mentioned with Sales and marketing, this function will also change as the industry moves more digital. When it comes to sales, the structure will no doubt change – selling via wholesalers and bookstores may be replaced with direct sales to the consumer online – whether via subscriptions, one-off online payments etc.

Content development doesn’t have a start and an end like it does in the traditional environment. The digital publishing world will (or I suppose does!) allow for the update of text, imagery, supporting elements etc with the click of a mouse. It makes it much more interactive – i.e. you could hover over a word you were not familiar with to find out the definition or click on a simple link to find out more about a particular subject.

The physical production and printing of a book in the traditional sense is a laborious, timely and costly process. By removing the need to print such books, these activities will all no doubt be affected.

QUESTION 2: With respect to the list of value-add activities for traditional print publishing, what areas are most affected by a transition to digital publishing? Can you rank or score the value-add areas by degree of impact from the transition to digital publishing?

As I alluded to previously, my gut feelings on these areas in relation to a transition to digital publishing are:

* Content acquisition and list building – fairly unaffected…although the literary agent’s rise in power may give him/her more control and cut out the need to depend on the publisher to help with this function.
* Financial investment and risk-taking – very affected.
* Content development – affected.
* Quality control – slightly affected.
* Management and coordination – fairly unaffected…when it comes to the idea of having every step of the way managed. The jobs itself, however, are certainly different (i.e. an IT manager to control distribution versus a warehouse manager tracking printing, binding etc.)
* Sales and marketing – affected…particularly when it comes to sales strategy and the makeup of the marketing mix.

Let’s say there is a ranking system based 0-5 with 0 being UNAFFECTED and 5 being EXTREMELY AFFECTED. My ratings would be:

* Content acquisition and list building: 1
* Financial investment and risk-taking: 5
* Content development: 3
* Quality control: 2
* Management and coordination: 2
* Sales and marketing: 3

QUESTION 3: Consider your responses above in light of different market segments. How would your ratings above change if you were focusing on each of the market segments below, in turn:
a. Trade publishing: This industry will probably have the hardest time adjusting…my inclination is that the rankings listed above would be the same for this sect.
b. Scholarly publishing: These publications have made the move to digital at a greater speed and ease…I therefore think the effects from here on out are less aggressive as with trade publishing.
* Content acquisition and list building: 1
* Financial investment and risk-taking: 3
* Content development: 2
* Quality control: 2
* Management and coordination: 1
* Sales and marketing: 1
c. Reference publishing: Encyclopedias, dictionaries, directories and the like are certainly facing a tough time when it comes to holding on to the age of tradition. I myself can’t remember the last time I used a physical phone book. Like scholarly publishing, they have already made strides in moving into the digital age.
* Content acquisition and list building: 1
* Financial investment and risk-taking: 2
* Content development: 2
* Quality control: 2
* Management and coordination: 1
* Sales and marketing: 1
d. Professional publishing AND e. Educational publishing: I’m inclined to say that these areas mirror each other...they both are still largely print-based, so it may be more like Trade than Reference or Scholarly publishing.
* Content acquisition and list building: 1
* Financial investment and risk-taking: 4
* Content development: 3
* Quality control: 2
* Management and coordination: 2
* Sales and marketing: 3