VIABLE EBOOKS ARE EVERYWHERE
SO WHAT?
The eBook Age Arrives
KENT R. ANDERSON
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS & PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINEAND JOURNAL WATCH
Overview of the eBook Space
ó Devices have overcome major usability andavailability hurdles
ó Change is happening rapidly
ó MobiPocket, ePub, LRF, and PDF are the majorstandards (PDF and Mobi are biggest)
ó “Book”is a misnomer for connected devices¡ Book formats are changing to adapt
¡ Information snacking and speeddating
¡ Blogs, magazines, newspapers all exist on these devices
The DP2C3 of eBooks
ó Devices are machines that can read ebooks
ó Platforms are systems that deliver content
ó Players are businesses trying to define ebooks
ó Content is what you read on an ebook
ó Consumption is how you absorb the content
ó Commercialization is how ebooks make money
My Qualifications
ó Publisher
ó Owner of many ebooks over the years
ó Author
ó Selfpublisher
The Major Devices
The Latest Entrant
Coming Soon
Plastic Logic Reader
Other Devices
ó Cell phone (basic, important in Japan)
ó Desktop computer
ó Laptop computer
ó Rumored devices¡ Apple developing some color ereading device
¡ Apple and Verizon collaborating (could be the same rumor)
Wired vs. Wireless
ó Kindle and iPhone are both connected via cellularnetworks¡ Major advantage for book purchasing on the fly, updates to
news and blog sources
ó Sony is tethered¡ Rumors of a connected Sony reader just surfaced
PDF Support
ó Current Kindle offers some PDF support¡ Users have to email a PDF to themselves and pay a transfer
charge of $0.25 per
ó New Kindle DX offers full PDF support
ó Sony eReader offers full PDF support
Web Browsing and Linking
ó Current Kindle offers rudimentary Web browsingand linking¡ Slow, browser is clunky
ó New Kindle DX promises better browser andfaster load times
ó Sony eReader does not link to the Web
Platforms
ó Amazon Kindle storefront
ó Amazon Kindle iPhone application
ó Lexcycle’s Stanza (now owned by Amazon)
ó Smashwords
ó Scribd
ó Sony eBook Store
A Note About Scribd
ó Started as free documentsharing site (2007)
ó In May 2009, announced ebook offerings
ó Downloads work on multiple devices
ó Openness creates threats of piracy
ó Authors keep 80% of net revenues¡ Fees reduce this by $0.25, so for me, 5%
¡ Fee for DRMprotected documents is $0.40
A Note About Smashwords
ó A very slick new entry into the field
ó Great conversion tools, great data tools
ó Good pricing system, with preview %, coupons, etc.
ó Savvy owners who are paying attention
ó Authors get 85% of net revenues
Amazon’s Big Play
ó Amazon wants to own the ebook storefront¡ Device
¡ Kindle application on iPhone
¡ Acquisition of Lexcycle’s Stanza
ó Neutralize competition on the device front
ó Own competition on the store front
ó Make a play on the content front
Content
ó Plenty of novels on ebooks
ó Technical materials hard to provision
ó Blogs and magazines work well
ó News sources work well
Content Conversion
ó Amazon has great tools for turning a narrative bookinto a Kindle version
ó Smashwords has an amazing program (theMeatgrinder) for making ebooks from native files
ó Scribd works OK, but not as good at the Meatgrinder
ó Scholarly and technical materials are harder toconvert to workable formats
Consumption
ó Called ebooks, but really ereaders
ó Once expanded to reading, the devices’true valueshines through
ó Information speeddating and snacking behaviors
ó Full, immersive reading still a luxury item
ó Audio feature of Kindle rather rudimentary, butsome users find it valuable¡ Audio book while driving, exercising = timeshifting
Commercialization
ó Ebook publishing can actually be more profitablefor authors and sellers than traditional publishing¡ Lower pricepoint for consumers, but less waste in
manufacturing, shipping, storage, and returns
ó Devices expensive, content cheap¡ Multipurpose devices spread the cost (iPhone)
¡ Content does preserve its brand, prices should rise
ó Royalties to publishers onpar with other licenses
ó No costs associated with returns, shipping, storage
Spam& EggsA Johnny DenovoMystery
ó Published February 2009
ó Print sales figures uncertain¡ > 200 and < 2,000
ó Smashwords –3 copies
ó Kindle –8 copies
ó Scribd –posted it 5/20
ó Dollars from ebooks¡ $6.63 + $25.20 = $31.83 (2%)
¡ Expenses = 0*
ó Dollars from print book¡ $1,810 (no royalties yet) (98%)
¡ Expenses = $2,200*
* = Doesn’t include marketing expenses
Changes in Book Publishing
ó “The number of new and revised titles produced bytraditional production methods fell 3% in 2008, to275,232, but the number of ondemand and shortrun titles soared 132%, to 285,394. The ondemandand short run segment is the method typically usedby selfpublishers as well as online publishers. Withthe decline in the number of traditional booksreleased last year and the jump in ondemand, thenumber of ondemand titles topped those oftraditional books for the first time.”
Publishers Weekly, May 19, 2009
Changes in STM Publishing
ó “[the U. of Michigan Press] will shift its scholarlypublishing from being primarily a traditional printoperation to one that is primarily digital. Within twoyears, press officials expect well over 50 of the 60plus monographs that the press publishes each year—currently in book form —to be released only indigital editions. Readers will still be able to use printondemand systems to produce versions that can beheld in their hands, but the press will considerthe digital monograph the norm.”
Inside HigherEd, March 23, 2009
Conclusion
ó Ebooks are for real
ó They are evolving rapidly
ó Very savvy players are entering the content space
ó Devices are too expensive¡ Don’t know why Amazon doesn’t make a strategic move here
ó Eink is on an improvement trajectory
ó Ondemand printing already outstrips traditional¡ Can ebooks be far behind?
KENT R. ANDERSON
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS &PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT
THE NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINEAND JOURNAL WATCH
Thank You
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