Digital devices and the race to catch up!

In the week which has seen the much-hyped launch of Apple’s iPad, there has, of late been much excitement about what all this activity (from Amazon with its Kindle and from Sony’s Reader) means for the future of publishing and e-books.

Already there are a lot of free e-books available (from new authors as well as out-of-copyright works) and pricing is going to be an issue.

However, some have the vision that Apple’s iBooks ‘store’ will do for books what iTunes has done for music. Only one article (that I have seen) from the ever-thoughtful Sathnam Sanghera in The Times (26th January 2010) has pointed out that this is not necessarily a model worth rushing to follow, when he concluded, “herein lies the paradox of the digital age: music and book fans will have more choice than ever, but as a result of paying nothing or virtually nothing for what they consume, they’ll eventually have very little to choose from.”

In truth, consumers see digital access as being cheaper for them (AND they then spend less than before on what they consume). This is not going to make it any easier for publishers to make money in an already difficult market. The real truth is that much of the drive for digital devices comes from the technology companies – publishers would rather sell books, but they now race to keep up. They try to embrace the future but will probably strangle themselves in the process.

Current offers

	Gurus on E-Business (Edition 1, Paperback) just £12.99 when bought with Gurus on Leadership (Edition 1, Paperback) Buy both
	Save 20% on Mastering Project Management (Edition 1, Paperback) when bought with Mastering Leadership (Edition 2, Paperback) Buy both
	Save 33% on Commercial Litigation: Damages and Other Remedies for Breach of Contract (Edition 2, Report) when bought with Commercial Contracts – Drafting Techniques and Precedents (Edition 2, Report) Buy both
	The Commercial Manager (Edition 1, Paperback) just £12.99 when bought with Project Risk Management – The Commercial Dimension (Edition 1, ) Buy both
	Save 33% on Employment Law Aspects of Mergers and Acquisitions: A Practical Guide (Edition 2, Report) when bought with Reviewing and Changing Contracts of Employment (Edition 2, Report) Buy both