'Is this the end for books?'
- Thread starter SteveJ
- Start date
Although it may take some time, books are definitely going away - possibly within our lifetimes. Just look at the way the e-Reader market has exploded in the past few years alone. Just a matter of time.
So many readers (like me, for example) are sentimental about books but even I'm tempted by, say, the iPad's Book/Bookstore feature. I hope we continue to live in a world in which both formats co-exist.
books won't die. there are hell of a lot of people who prefer reading paperbacks to ebooks.
It will become a collector's item eventually, like vinyls are today.
It is obviously a change for the better. Unless we come up with technology to convert paper into trees or something...
It is obviously a change for the better. Unless we come up with technology to convert paper into trees or something...
I've just bought a book about Monet, I never even considered seeing if it was available fir the iPad as some books just have to be books
Even though we have kindles, ipads and other book readers now they still cant beat the feel of a book in your hands, especially one that you have waited for release or hunted for to complete a collection. A lot of people still prefer a book to read and collect over electronic versions.
Books stores are already closing and as kindles and the like improve eBooks will become the norm like it or not. Like the end of vinyl a few will miss them but the majority will gladly adopt a better/cheaper/more convenient format like they did CD's and now hardrive/cloud stored music. The words are the important thing, not the medium by which they are delivered.
People who have been born in the pre-ipad/e-reader time maybe. But kids these days are brought up more and more with the electronic options. I'm afraid books will indeed die out over time.
I prefer reading books over anything on a screen as well though and hope books will stay available throughout the rest of my life, but I think it won't be so long until books become collector's items.
Very true.
There are a few reasons which I still buy physical paperbooks, if these reasons are no longer valid then I could see myself switching to electric documents. Some people might be waiting for more than me to convert, others less. Just from a personal perspective:
- Propriety Formats. I don't want to get caught in a tussle between Apple, Amazon or whoever else it is. As it stands right now, I can go to the shop, pay for a book and enjoy complete ownership of it. Being wedged into a certain format is a step backwards.
- Barriers to Entry. Regardless of the format issues, you still have to buy an eBook Reader. Personally I think each has a mark against its name. My phone is very portable but the screen is small. My laptop is too bulky to carry around like a book. In terms of size, only something the size of a tablet computer makes sense. Then again, they're either ludicrously expensive (hello, iPad) or not multi-functional enough. As it stands, if I pay for a book, I also get the medium of delivery included in the price and it's usually perfect. No premiums for functions I don't want.
- Price. Books have been getting really expensive recently, I must admit. The problem is, eBooks aren't much cheaper (about £2 cheaper at best?) and they're not a "full" purchase for the two reasons I mentioned above. If I'm correct, paperbooks are VAT-free so they can compete with eBooks in terms of pricing points.
- Battery-powered. I don't want to buy yet another device which will require charging every so often. I know the Kindle lasts a month, which is awesome, but it's still not better than the never my paperbooks require. In fairness, this will easily be circumvented by adding something like a solar panel or a wind-up mechanism in the future but for now it's just the addition of another problem that doesn't exist with paperbooks.
I'm interested in what others think? I have another friend who I was talking to this about ages ago who also reads a lot of books for leisure and he seemed to agree with me. We're not anti-eBook but right now we can't see a viable reason for switching other than the cool factor. My friend also mentioned the limited range of eBooks as well but I think that'll easily be sorted soon. We're already seeing small publications go Kindle only.
- Propriety Formats. I don't want to get caught in a tussle between Apple, Amazon or whoever else it is. As it stands right now, I can go to the shop, pay for a book and enjoy complete ownership of it. Being wedged into a certain format is a step backwards.
- Barriers to Entry. Regardless of the format issues, you still have to buy an eBook Reader. Personally I think each has a mark against its name. My phone is very portable but the screen is small. My laptop is too bulky to carry around like a book. In terms of size, only something the size of a tablet computer makes sense. Then again, they're either ludicrously expensive (hello, iPad) or not multi-functional enough. As it stands, if I pay for a book, I also get the medium of delivery included in the price and it's usually perfect. No premiums for functions I don't want.
- Price. Books have been getting really expensive recently, I must admit. The problem is, eBooks aren't much cheaper (about £2 cheaper at best?) and they're not a "full" purchase for the two reasons I mentioned above. If I'm correct, paperbooks are VAT-free so they can compete with eBooks in terms of pricing points.
- Battery-powered. I don't want to buy yet another device which will require charging every so often. I know the Kindle lasts a month, which is awesome, but it's still not better than the never my paperbooks require. In fairness, this will easily be circumvented by adding something like a solar panel or a wind-up mechanism in the future but for now it's just the addition of another problem that doesn't exist with paperbooks.
I'm interested in what others think? I have another friend who I was talking to this about ages ago who also reads a lot of books for leisure and he seemed to agree with me. We're not anti-eBook but right now we can't see a viable reason for switching other than the cool factor. My friend also mentioned the limited range of eBooks as well but I think that'll easily be sorted soon. We're already seeing small publications go Kindle only.
I still prefer the feel of paper vs. reading on a screen.
There's good arguments for & against the e-revolution. Regarding authors, for example: a fledgling writer I know recently sold over 100,000 e-books(!). And yet, her profit was minimal (due to the very low pricing necessary for her book to compete with works by established, mainstream novelists).
The pricing structure on ebooks is still at levels that prohibit people buying books as a casual purchase. If you were so inclined you'd pay probably £10 or so for the latest John Grisham novel, which to me seems bizarre when the costs are much less than those of paper books.
I just buy ebooks now. They are very cheap. Game of Thrones cost me just over £4.
Where do you buy them, Lance?
Amazon.
As long as people don't stop reading and writing, it doesn't really matter what format it's read in IMO.
Every page?....I can't imagine that's very legal.
Every page?....I can't imagine that's very legal.
Books on the Kindle or other reader are about 1-2 dollars cheaper than an actual book. I'd rather have the book in my hands given that it would take a long time to cover the price of the Kindle since the savings are so low. I might consider getting an ereader at some point, but I don't want one at the moment.
I use the free Kindle app on my phone.
What's it like reading on one of these e-reader things? Does it not hurt your eyes reading all that text on them?
I read on my iPad. It's not as tedious as sounds.
Not at all.
The kindle is not backlit so not the same issues as reading on a tablet. I am a bit of a convert actually.
Some people can get e-books for free though, through those illegal means. They ought to be reported...
Are they?
Never. A book will always be unrivalled compared to lifeless objects like e-books. I've never bought into the e-books concept anyway, a book has a life and path of it's own.
Would she have been published at all in a physical format?
Yeah, mate, as she's with a relatively small publisher. It's often a much quicker, less convoluted process - from signing to publication - with an independent press.
There's a decent article linked below, Mike, on all-format pricing and what pricing models mean for publishers, authors and customers.
The true price of publishing | Books | guardian.co.uk
Yeah, I've read that article before. In any creative industry the main costs are in the actual creating, and the scouting for it. The actual physical materials, printing and distribution costs pennies whether it's a physical or digital medium.
I assumed so given the costs associated with printing, distribution etc. but obviously I'm wrong.
I'm not so sure you are wrong, mate; the article I linked reads a lot like special pleading for publishers who are determined to set high prices, whatever the format.
I doubt that you are. The logic of eBooks is that the consumer should save a huge amount. Bookshops get about 50% before discounting most of which should disappear with digital sales of eBooks. Printing and distributing the physical item must also be a significant cost which would largely disappear. Plus with cheaper prices sales of good books should increase allowing even more competitive pricing. So a reduction of at least 50% from the RRP of a hard/paperback is entirely achievable. More probably.
Like with many mediums it is the large publishers who are slowing things down because they realise that they are now largely irrelevant or at least far less relevant that they used to be and allowing things to move to their logical conclusion in this digital age is their death knell.
There is a particular series of novels that my son loves and the new one came out a few weeks ago. Not being Harry Potter or Twilight the local bookshops didn't carry it and neither did the discount sellers. So our option was to order it at full RRP for $40 as the paperback isn't due for quite a while. Are they fecking insane? $40 for a kids novel? I'd want a large textbook for that price and even then only if there weren't enough copies in the library. And don't get me started on text books. When it is cheaper to photocopy every page of a book that you borrow from the library than to purchase it then you know the world has gone mad.
The music, film and publishing industries are pushing people towards piracy and it is harder to get people back than to keep them as paying customers in the first place.
Like with many mediums it is the large publishers who are slowing things down because they realise that they are now largely irrelevant or at least far less relevant that they used to be and allowing things to move to their logical conclusion in this digital age is their death knell.
There is a particular series of novels that my son loves and the new one came out a few weeks ago. Not being Harry Potter or Twilight the local bookshops didn't carry it and neither did the discount sellers. So our option was to order it at full RRP for $40 as the paperback isn't due for quite a while. Are they fecking insane? $40 for a kids novel? I'd want a large textbook for that price and even then only if there weren't enough copies in the library. And don't get me started on text books. When it is cheaper to photocopy every page of a book that you borrow from the library than to purchase it then you know the world has gone mad.
The music, film and publishing industries are pushing people towards piracy and it is harder to get people back than to keep them as paying customers in the first place.
Good post, Wibble.
The thing is that people don't mind paying the talent but when a huge proportion doesn't go to the talent they care very little about IP issues. Doubly so with films where so much of the crap watched wouldn't be watched if you had to pay for it. And cinema is the walking dead. The prices are just unsustainable. I won't go more than 2 or 3 times a year because of the outrageous cost.
If you need an e reader, would this not reduce the amount of people who actually read? As it is if I like a book I can lend it to a friend and likewise borrow from them, I'm not going to lend someone a Kindle or whatever though, and wouldnt pay x amount of money for an e book based on word of mouth alone.
I like tangible things, physical things, there is something I love about having shelves full of books even though I've not looked at some of them for 30 years, I still see them, smell them, wonderful things! Yet my father is quite happy with his Kindle, takes up no room, can get books in English without having to wait 6 weeks for them to appear in the post, etc. The beauty with digital is that books should never go out of print in theory, but it's all too clinical for me. One of the great joys in life is spending an afternoon just browsing through an old traditional book shop.
I would like it to be known that under no circumstances whatsoever do I share eBooks or any other digital media with anyone else. Not even my wife. Or my son. Or his friends. Or my friends. Ever.
I agree except I can see my bookcase going the way of my shelves of DVDs and CDs which are largely now decorative. I watched a DVD for the first time in over a year last weekend.
And I'm too busy to even contemplate browsing in a second hand book shop.