Libraries, technology and competition….

Interesting article at Library Journal about libraries and the opportunities provided by new technology (particularly ebooks).  Here are a few choice extracts:

Public libraries

Public libraries also serve their communities as physical gathering places that nurture culture. But libraries have no monopoly on offering free Wi-Fi Internet and comfortable reading and cultural spaces; it’s only a matter of time before Starbucks and others add free ebooks, book clubs, and other content services onto the music and news that they currently offer. Bookstores of all types will not want to be left out of the reading-room market.

It’s unlikely, however, that the Starbucks and Borders of the world are going to want to serve the folks who can’t afford the $3 lattes or the $20 hardcovers. It would be tragic if communities found themselves divided between ebook-haves and ebook-have-nots.

Academic libraries

The cheap distribution channels made possible by ebooks will allow libraries to nurture written scholarship in ways that were not possible with print. Cheap digitization will allow libraries to expand the reach of collections, while lowered barriers to publication will help libraries foster written scholarship into the future.

School libraries

School librarians may well find their space, print collections, and budgets completely devoured by an ebook monster sooner than they imagine; we are only a few years away from ebook reader devices being cheap enough that it will be economically feasible to put an entire school library…. into every student’s backpack. This could be mortal competition for school libraries as such.

Or maybe not. Now more than ever, children need to learn how to find, access, evaluate, and interact with digital information. Devices don’t make that happen by themselves, even if they come with thousands of carefully selected ebooks.

Eric Hellman concludes:

Obviously, there is still a lot of uncertainty about how and when libraries develop ebook services as well as how libraries might best fit in a world where books are mostly consumed via ebook readers. What seems clear is that if libraries just sit back and wait to see what happens, rather than participating in the cycle of innovation and competition, they will end up with diminished roles in our culture. It’s important that we don’t let that happen.

Can’t argue with that.  There will be many difficulties ahead in the light of the current economic situation, but it is important that the library service can find a place for technological developments alongside a strong, undiminished book fund.  New trends in using the service are emerging, it would seem prudent to take note and put the changes in place to take advantage of this.  Far better that than burying heads in the sand and ignoring the obvious change in interaction that is taking place.  Ignoring changing trends has led to many businesses falling by the wayside….it will be no different for libraries.

Will the iPad Kill the Kindle?

So finally, after months of speculation, Apple’s iPad has finally been unveiled. Although there is much to discuss about Apple’s latest device, the aspect that is most interesting to me is its use as an ereader. What was particularly intriguing about this development was the announcement that the iPad would support the ePub format. This could have massive implications for the ebook market, and is potentially disastrous for one market player in particular.

The iPad - Apple's Kindle Killer?

I have been fairly sceptical about the Kindle for some time. On a number of occasions I have questioned the wisdom of Amazon’s decision to pursue its own format rather than embrace ePub which has quickly become the industry standard format. Whilst they have had fairly limited competition in the ebook market, they have been able to getaway with backing their own proprietary format. However, now Apple have entered the fray, Amazon’s Kindle could be in real trouble. By supporting the ePub format, Apple have left Amazon nowhere to turn. Surely no-one will seriously consider a Kindle when it doesn’t support a format that has pretty much become standard? Although speculation is a dangerous game, it seems hard to see much of a future for the Kindle unless it adopts the ePub standard as soon as possible. If it does not, it is dead. And even if it does, it could be too late. The Kindle has not been able to get a foothold in Europe due to various technological issues (Amazon’s Whispernet cannot be used in Europe). Should the iPad launch over here before the Kindle gets a proper Europe-wide release (which is pretty much a nailed on certainty), the Kindle won’t have a chance.

However, Amazon may have one thing in its locker. The one drawback with the iPad, in terms of ebooks anyway, is that users could suffer from eyestrain as it is has a backlit screen. Reading from a screen using e-ink is far more comfortable than reading from a backlit screen as it puts no strain on your eyes whatsoever, and comes close to the experience of reading a ‘real’ book. That said, more and more people seem to comfortable reading text from their iPhone/Touch. I have even heard people suggest that they will ditch their ereader in favour of reading from their iPhone. So maybe it isn’t that much of an advantage after all!

As well as sounding the death knell for the Kindle, the iPad could have a very positive impact on the ebook market as a whole. With Apple’s current strength, is it unlikely to see the cost of ebooks come down and for this new format to finally take-off? Could it be that 2010 will see real growth for ebooks? It’ll be interesting to see how things develop in the light of Apple’s foray into the ebook market.

Update

Looks like my initial excitement may not have been well founded.  Just discovered this on an Adobe blog:

It looks like Apple is continuing to impose restrictions on their devices that limit both content publishers and consumers. Unlike many other ebook readers using the ePub file format, consumers will not be able to access ePub content with Apple’s DRM technology on devices made by other manufacturers.  And without Flash support, iPad users will not be able to access the full range of web content, including over 70% of games and 75% of video on the web.

I do hope this isn’t the case.  If the iPad was to adopt an ePub standard compatible with other readers then, as I said above, we could really see the ebook market take-off.  Maybe this will change before launch, if it does not it’s not the step forward I hoped it would be.

Those Christmas Kindle Statistics…..

It’s not very often that I write a sceptical blog post about ebooks, so brace yourself, I am about to break a habit of a lifetime (well, maybe not a lifetime….it’s not like ebooks have been around for ever…where was I..).  As you may be aware from the flood of tweets and media stories, on the 26th December, Amazon announced the following:

SEATTLE, Dec 26, 2009 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) today announced that Kindle has become the most gifted item in Amazon’s history. On Christmas Day, for the first time ever, customers purchased more Kindle books than physical books. The Kindle Store now includes over 390,000 books and the largest selection of the most popular books people want to read, including New York Times Bestsellers and New Releases.

Now, normally when reading such a press release I would be filled with optimism about what this means for the future of ebooks.  However, in this instance, I greeted the statistics with a healthy dose of scepticism.  I could not believe that with the sight of ebook reader owners still a rarity, it would be even remotely conceivable that ebooks could have overtaken their paper companions.  Of course, as is very often the case, the statistics are a little misleading.

The problem with Kindle books is that they are quite unlike any other product on their website (or websites).  Although the Kindle is now available to customers outside the US (including the UK), ebooks can only be purchased via the US site (ie Amazon.com) and not via a local Amazon site (ie Amazon.co.uk).  Consequently, as all sales are routed through the .com site, it will produce higher than expected results.  For example, sales of The Lost Symbol in hardback on Amazon.com would reflect only sales to US consumers.  Likewise, sales on Amazon.co.uk would only reflect sales to UK consumers.  However, sales of the ebook version of the same title on Amazon.com would actually include buyers from around 100 countries, including both the UK and the US, as Amazon.com is the only Amazon site that offers ebooks.  Consequently, if sales only reflect those on Amazon.com, it seems fairly likely that ebook sales will outstrip those of paperbooks.  In short, the statistics are a little misleading.  This is not the tipping point that the industry has been waiting for. It is merely an attempt by Amazon to big itself and its products up.  Sad as it is for me to admit…I so wanted it to be true.

Anyway, in truth, the only way we will really get to the bottom of the strength of the current ebook market would be for all ebook reader manufacturers to come clean about how many readers they have sold as well as for retailers to detail the sales of ebooks.  It is only through transparent statistics such as this that we will really know where the ebook market is.  As Bobbie Johnson points out on his Guardian blog, transparency is not only essential for Amazon, but potentially the whole ebook industry.

More eBooks…..

As promised, I thought I would share the results of my recent (entirely unscientific) ebook poll.  Much as I expected, the cost of the technology (both for the readers and the ebooks themselves) was the primary concern of many who voted.  In total, around 40% of the votes cast reflected the need for cheaper ebooks and cheaper readers. Range was also a factor with 15% of votes counted suggesting that the limited range of titles at present is a hindrance to making the move to the electronic format.  A further factor was DRM (Digital Rights Management) with 13% of votes cast indicating that the removal of DRM would be desirable.   However, it was encouraging to note that only six votes flatly refused to even contemplate the idea of ebooks – although given that this poll was primarily circulated via Twitter, one has to consider the type of person who was partaking (generally tech-savvy types who would likely give serious thought to purchasing an eReader).  Consequently, it is impossible to extrapolate these results across the general population (which makes you wonder why I bothered in the first place!), but it is fair to say that there is a high degree of interest in ebooks and certainly the poll suggests that a number of people could be persuaded to buy an eReader if the price is right.  The interest is there, it is up to publishers and manufacturers to meet the demands of the consumers.

Ebooks, audiobooks and VAT

One of the factors keeping both ebooks and audiobooks high in price is the application of VAT at the full 15% rate.  Printed books have been zero rated for VAT for sometime now and it is about time that a reduction in VAT was also applied to audiobooks and ebooks.  Given that both formats have huge advantages for those who suffer from visual impairments, it seems hugely unfair that they should be penalised in this way.  The EU has already voted to reduce VAT on these items, but it is entirely optional as to whether member states apply this ruling.  In order to give the government a gentle nudge, there is currently a petition running at the No10 website urging a reduction on VAT on these items.  At present there are only 21 signatures and there needs to be over 200 for there to be an official government response, so there is some way to go to reach the target.  The petition closes on 20th November so that doesn’t give a lot of time.  I would urge people to Tweet about this poll, spread the word and get as many people as possible to sign the petition.  These technologies can be of great benefit to those who would otherwise be excluded, so I would urge everyone to support a reduction in VAT on them.

Facebook Group

Finally, I have set up an ebook Reader group on Facebook to share experiences with ebooks in whatever format they come in (including on the iPhone).  If you are interested/curious/sceptical about ebooks, feel free to join the group and share your thoughts.  With the imminent release of the Kindle over here, ebooks are going to get bigger and bigger and there will be much to ponder in terms of how their growth will affect libraries and retailers in the future.

The New Kindle

As you may be aware by now, Amazon have announced that their Kindle ebook reader will now be available in 100 countries across the globe.  Couple this announcement with Sony’s recently released readers and things are getting very interesting in the ebook world.  Of course the Kindle news isn’t without a downside.  It will only be available to UK users through the US website at a cost of £200 once import duties are taken into account.  Sadly, affordable ereaders are still a pipe dream at the moment.

That said, it is still exciting news.  With the imminent UK release of the Kindle we will see some much needed competition in the ebook market over here.  Sony has been by far and away the market leader, holding a fairly dominant position in the market for sometime.  The release of the Kindle could, however, lead to a price war with the cost of the hardware decreasing and the appeal of owning a machine increasing.  An added benefit may well be an improvement on the retailing side of ebooks.  The current offering is still pretty poor with prices still not markedly different from paper copies.  A new name on the market (and a leader in the largest ebook market – the US), could kickstart a revolution in the retailing of ebooks and make for a fare better customer experience (I get rather frustrated with the current offerings, Waterstone’s in particular has a poor site), as well as reduced prices for ebooks.

I remain optimistic about the future of ebooks and, when getting people’s views on ebooks, I sense that there is a lot of interest in them once a number of problems have been resolved.  I believe that they will really start to take-off once Amazon fully enters the market here.  For that reason, I think it is essential for public libraries to get onboard (in a considered way of course) as soon as is feasible.  How great would it be for users to be able to ‘borrow’ your books and take them on holiday with them without physically taking the book?  Borrowers wouldn’t have to worry about either losing their book while they are away or the baggage allowance (although admittedly losing the reader would be a major worry – although not for the library as the books will not be lost!).  As for the ability to alter the size of the font, the advantages for those that rely on large print books are obvious.

In response to the growing media interest in ebooks, I have set up a twtpoll to see what would convince people to invest in an ereader.  The poll closes on Sunday and I will post the results at the beginning of next week.

Ebooks – Is A Breakthrough Near?

With the press coverage that has accompanied the release of the latest Dan Brown ‘novel’ (I’m not a fan!), I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to look once more at ebooks and share a few thoughts of my own experiences, as well as what I think publishers need to do to ensure the success of the format.

It has been nine months now since I first got my hands on my Sony Reader.  Although I have always read a great deal, I am not particularly precious about hard/paperbacks.  The thing that has always been of primary concern to myself is the actual content.  Now, some may say that there is nothing like the smell and feel of owning a book, and that may well be true for them but I don’t buy books for smell and appearance, I buy books because the content interests me.  That’s not to say that the opposing view lacks legitimacy, it’s all about personal preference.  At this point I feel I should re-iterate my position on ebooks and their place in the publishing world.

In my view, ebooks are simply an alternative format for the delivery of text.  They will not replace paperbacks or hardbacks anymore than audio books have displaced paper copies.   My attitude to ebooks is much the same as it is to MP3s.  Some bands I set out to purchase hard copies of everything they release (in my case everything by Pearl Jam or Radiohead).  Some other bands I will mainly buy hard copies, but the odd EP/single I will download (for example, I own all Bloc Party’s albums, but I only have digital copies of their EPs), whereas some others I will simply buy the digital download and that is all.  For me, this is the same with ebooks.  Should it be a book by Bret Easton Ellis, I will purchase a hard copy without hesitation.  If it is an author I am less interested in, I will simply download a copy of the text (I have recently downloaded Slaughterhouse 5 having never read a Vonnegut before).  To me, it is not a case of either/or, there is much more to it than that.

Anyway, I digress.  I have been very happy with my Reader since I received it as a gift.  I find it exceptionally easy to read from the screen and although there is a slight delay when turning pages, it has become barely noticeable with time.  I like the way that I can carry a whole library of books around with me and dip in and out of any of them at any moment (aided by the fact that you can have multiple bookmarks on as many books as you like).  I like the fact that I can organise them into collections (such as ‘non-fiction’, ‘fiction’ and ‘classics’ – you can categorise however you see fit) just like I was carrying my own personal library.  One of the biggest benefits, however, has been when travelling.  On my last trip to Spain I had read all the books that I had taken with me, leaving me nothing to read on the flight home.  However, instead of rushing to the nearest bookshop and hunting down an English language text (both hard to find and ridiculously expensive), I visited the WHSmiths ebook store, found an appropriate title and downloaded it, all in a matter of minutes.  Thus I ensured that I didn’t have to endure the flight home without something to read.  Overall, my experiences with my Reader over the past 9 months have been very positive and it has become one of my best loved gadgets.

Despite my attachment to my Reader, there are a great many people out there who are very sceptical about ebooks.  A recent poll in The Guardian suggested 77% of people would not consider using an ebook reader (although the poll itself is flawed as it uses the common either/or dichotomy which is not appropriate as I have already indicated).  The comments that follow certainly seem to support this viewpoint (although they are perhaps misled by the false dichotomy of the poll in question).  Whilst a number of comments relate to the physicality of books and an emotional attachment, there are a number of valid comments from people regarding the format itself.

Although the potential for ebooks is great, there are still a number of factors that need to be addressed for the sceptics to be won over and for ebooks to become a popular alternative:

1. Reduce the price of ebooks and readers – The cost of ebooks is still far too high compared to paper copies.  When you also factor in the cost of the equipment needed to read ebooks, it is clearly an expensive option.  A case in point: Dan Brown’s heavily promoted novel is retailing for £13.29 in ebook format and the hardback is available for £4.99 at Amazon.
2. Publish more ebooks – Although more and more ebooks are coming onto the market all the time (and perhaps more will after the release of Dan Brown’s latest), there is still not enough choice to warrant the purchase of a reader.  Even now, it is quite a rare thing for me to find something that I really want to read in ebook format.
3. Support one format –  The best way for ebooks to succeed is for one solitary format to be the preferred method of delivery.  Amazon are still promoting their format over all others for obvious reasons.  EPUB would be the preferable option (in fact that format is pretty much accepted as standard now so one wonders how Amazon intend on proceeding with their format).
4. Address DRM – Digital Rights Management is still a concern.  Whilst some ebooks have been relaxed regarding DRM (Ben Goldacre’s Bad Science allows 35 copies every 7 days) others off no such relaxation.  If ebooks were to take off, the DRM issue needs to be seriously considered and addressed, particularly with the associated danger of losing your entire collection.
5. Improved retailing – At present, ebook retailing in the UK is pretty poor at best.  There is a very limited choice of retailers (at present you can only purchase through Waterstone’s, WHSmiths and Borders) and the actual purchasing experience through any of these retailers is pretty poor (the fact that WHSmiths of all places is the best tells you all you need to know about the state of ebook retailing in the UK).  There needs to be a dedicated UK based ebook retailer who can provide a much better purchasing experience).

Although addressing these issues would not necessarily ensure a bright future for ebooks on their own, they would remove some of the doubts in people’s minds about the rationality of purchasing an ebook reader.  If these issues are not addressed, ebooks are in danger of becoming very much a niche product that will never break into the mainstream, no matter how hard manufacturers try to appeal to the iPod generation.

New Sony Reader?

A member of the MobileRead forum has posted some information on the rumoured next generation Sony Reader. The poster quoted a source on the Sony Insider forum who claimed to have discovered two service manuals for the supposed new Readers.  According to this source the models are called the PRS-300 and the PRS-600:

The Sony Reader PRS300

PRS-300: 5″ screen, no touch screen, no audio output, no card slots, ~440MB user partition, 220g.

The Sony Reader PRS-600

PRS-600: 6″ screen, touch screen, audio output, SD/MS slots, ~380MB user partition, 286g.

As with the PRS-505, it is rumoured that these models do not have a wireless connection or built in light.  Personally I do not find that too much of a problem, especially in light of the Kindle/Orwell debacle.  As the Sony Reader is the market leader in the UK at the moment, wireless probably isn’t a major concern.  Should the Kindle make it to Europe however, it could be a very different story.

Update

Engadget has more details on these models:

If said sheets are to be believed, the 5-inch (800 x 600 resolution) Sony PRS300-RC Reader Pocket Edition will ship with 512MB of onboard memory, PC and Mac support, a battery good for 7,500 page turns and USB 2.0 connectivity. The 6-inch (800 x 600 resolution) PRS600-SC Reader Touch Edition checks in at 0.4-inches thin and boasts a virtual keyboard, doodle capability, 512MB of storage, a built-in English e-dictionary, PC and Mac support and the same battery as on the smaller sibling.

Review of Cool-er Ebook Reader by TechCrunch

Digital Book 2009 – Presentations

The International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF) have now published the presentations from the recent Digital Book 2009 conference on their website.  The presentations include:

EPUB Update: Best Practices and Case Studies for Publishers and Service Bureaus Utilizing XML Workflows

• Liisa McCloy-Kelley – Random House, VP Director, Content Management Group

• Dave Cramer – TexTech, Inc., XML Architect

Panel: Channels for EPUB eBook Sales and Distribution

• Erica Lazzaro – OverDrive, Inc, General Counsel

• Bob LiVolsi – BooksOnBoard, President & CEO

Panel: Emerging eBook Business Models…and the Role of DRM

• Andrew Savikas– O’Reilly Media, Vice President of Digital Initiatives

• Angela James – Samhain Publishing, Executive Editor

Featured Presentation

• Robert Nell – Director Business Development, Sony Electronics

Confessions of an eReadaholic – What Consumers Really Want

• Michael Santangelo – Brooklyn Public Library, Electronic Resources Specialist

Panel: Update on eReading Devices and Software

• Nick Bogaty – Adobe, Sr. Business Development Manager, Digital Publishing

Ebooks at Borders

Good news for UK ebook readers, Borders has now started selling ebooks bringing some much needed competition.  Until now, there have been only two retailers in the UK supplying ebooks: WHSmith and Waterstones (WHSmiths being the cheaper and more accessible option).  The introduction of ebooks on the Borders website could be good news indeed.

Ebook page on Borders website

At first sight, the website looks far easier to navigate than the Waterstones website (which I find particularly badly designed).  For example, when clicking on one of the categories on the Waterstones website, you are presented with a list of books, but the categories disappear.  On the Borders website, however, the categories are permanently fixed in the sidebar, making navigation far easier.  So far, so impressed.  The deal clincher will, of course, be competitive pricing (something that has been alien to ebooks so far).  This is something I am sure to look into a little closer over the coming days, so expect a blog post comparing the three main retailers of ebooks on value for money in the near future.