Introduction
Cultural industries refer to the segments of society that are dedicated to the production and distribution of cultural goods or services. At the time of their production, such products are considered important embodiments of cultural expressions, regardless of their commercial value. These industries are varied. They include music, cinema, audio-visual production and publishing, and multimedia industries. Since the industries are very critical in conveying important cultural messages and practices, they are relevant to the societal practices of any given time (Greco, 2013). The fact that there is an emphasis on ‘time’ is a clear indication that society is changing and that what was culturally relevant in the past or today may not be relevant in the future. The cultural messages and practices are communicated through various media channels such as radio, television, video games, book publishing, and the internet (Striphas, 2010). Technology and digitisation have changed the media and cultural industries in diverse ways. This situation has led to new ways of production and dissemination of cultural information. This paper will discuss the impacts of digitisation and technology on book publishing, which is a major media and cultural industry.
A Background to Book Publishing
Publishing is as old as society and civilisation. Even before the advent of the typewriter and the printing press, important messages were handwritten and passed over to society in collaboration with the use of oral communication, which was slow and unreliable (Thompson, 2005). Publishing can be traced to 3000BCE when clay tablets and papyrus rolls were used in Egypt and Mesopotamia to preserve important information, especially by the ruling class of the time. However, the introduction of the printing press in the 15th century changed everything and ushered in a new era where information and cultural messages could be printed in bulk and distributed over large areas, reaching hundreds and thousands of people on any given day (Cunningham, 2004). The Bible was the first-ever book to be printed on a printing press. This achievement, which ushered in a new era of publishing books, has continued to the present day (Carreiro, 2010). In the 18th century, the first magazine and newspaper were made in London. Since then, magazines and newspapers have become an integral part of communicating cultural messages and other relevant information up to modern times (Klinenberg, 2005). Today, the publishing of written information is no longer limited to books, magazines, and newspapers as it was witnessed traditionally. The publishing industry has been revolutionized by the emerging technologies that are characteristic of the 21st century (Hesmondhalgh & Baker, 2013). The technologies have now led to major changes in how the publishing or dissemination of written information is done. Technologies have also led to major changes in how such information is controlled, sold, and shared (Ronchi, 2009). One of the major technological influences of publishing is the digitisation of content, which emerged following the introduction of desktop publishing starting in 1983 when the first desktop publishing software emerged.
Digitisation and Its Impact on Book Publishing as Cultural Industry
In the last three decades, the book publishing industry has undergone tremendous changes that have been fuelled by technological modifications that have characterized the industry. These technological changes go hand in hand with the emergence of computers and computing-related technologies such as the internet. Although these technologies are very recent, their impacts have been tremendous not only on the book publishing industry but also across all the media and cultural industries in the world (Wagman & Urquhart, 2012). By definition, digitisation refers to the process of converting or making any content computer-readable. Digitization has been accelerated by the emergence and advancement of hardware such as personal computers and mobile devices. Other advancements in software/applications such as graphic manipulation software search, desktop publishing, and the witnessed advanced networks, which include the internet and the mobile telephone have also contributed to digitisation (Hesmondhalgh & Baker, 2013).
In the book publishing industry, the emergence of desktop publishing has revolutionized and made it easy to design or publish books that have advanced graphics at reduced costs that go to the designing and typing of the books. The use of desktop publishing ushered in an era where book publishing was now easily accessible to the masses, with the only requirement being a computer, desktop publishing software, and a printer (Bustamante, 2004). However, these changes were not permanent. The emergence of word publishing software and Portable Digital Format (PDF) and the World Wide Web, or what is majorly referred to as the internet, has revolutionised how publishing is done. Presently, with an only computer or computer-related devices such as mobile phones and internet connectivity, an individual can access, download, and read millions of books without leaving the comfort of his or her home.
The emergence of digitisation has changed publishing in numerous but drastic ways that threaten the existence and relevance of traditional publishing. In traditional publishing, the publishing business was strictly controlled by few publishing houses that had the financial capabilities to print, market, and implement copyright protection on the books (Thompson, 2005). Such controlled publishing ensures that the publishers and authors could easily control the number of published books, as well as where they were sold. The ease of the implementation of copyrights ensured that authors could restrict the access of their content, especially in the event of unfair competition. Based on the premise of copyright laws and protection, the publishing industry thrived and became a multibillion-dollar industry since it was commercialized more than 200 years ago (Towse, 2002).
The emergence of online eMarketing and eCommerce, courtesy of the internet and the World Wide Web has fuelled the thriving of digital publishing in the last two decades. In 1996, long after the introduction of desktop publishing, the Amazon Company, the currently biggest online store, opened its online bookstore where it could market and sell print books through the internet. Once a customer bought a book, it could be shipped to him or her wherever he or she was (Cunningham, 2004). 10 years down the line, the Amazon Company introduced its eBook or the digital bookstore where readers could access eBooks and read them through Amazon’s Kindle, an online eReader for digital content. For the first time in 2011, eBook sales overtook the physical book sales on Amazon, which was viewed as a major triumph for digital content. As of 2014, Amazon provides more than a 3.2million eBook titles, some of which have been digitized from the original print books, while others are purely digital format books.
Currently, hundreds of digital books are sold or availed free of charge over the internet. Such trends are a major influence on the publishing industry, which now has to address new challenges that emerge with digitized content. Firstly, controlling the accessibility of the books is a major hurdle for many authors and publishers. Sharing a digital content book is very easy, firstly through email, or by posting it online where people can access it free of charge (Ronchi, 2009). The ease of accessing books over the internet means that applying copyright protection is a very difficult process. However, the popularity of Amazon’s Kindle provides a major sneak view of how digital content can be protected from unpermitted access or piracy, which has become a major concern for the digitization of books (Towse, 2002). Through protected digital content formats or the use of other restrictions and security technologies, the accessibility of digital content can be protected to ensure that the author can benefit from the original content.
The Impact of Digitisation on the Book Publishing Business
Publishing is a multi-billion dollar industry whose main business has been focused on the publication and sale of print content (Hesmondhalgh, 2012). The emergence of digital content calls for a review of the business model that has held this cultural industry for a very long. The sale of print books is a major segment of this industry. However, with the emergence of digital content, it is important to revisit the business model and find ways of incorporating the sale of digital content as a viable and possibly a replacement of the print book sales segment. The digitisation of book publishing means that the industry requires reviewing important segments of the industry such as accessibility and pricing.
It is important to know that it is no longer possible to restrict the accessibility of digital content to the traditional way that is marked by constraints on illegal publications of books (Horava, 2011). Currently, such restrictions should focus on illegal sharing and readership, which have been facilitated by the ease of sharing of digital content. To address this issue, the industry must focus on enforcing digital restriction technologies. For instance, Amazon and other leading online bookstores have successfully implemented the encryption technique.
The other most important impact of digitisation relates to the pricing of books. For the first time, publishers do not have a monopoly on access and distribution of content. With a click of a button, digital content can be shared with hundreds and even millions of people within a very short time (Klinenberg, 2005). Further, the traditional major publishers are no longer an important part of the production process since armature publishers can enter the market and make high-quality digital content today. In the wake of such trends, many issues need to be considered while pricing the books. Firstly, digital content does not involve the use of paper materials or ink as it was witnessed before. The elimination of paper and ink, which were previously major inputs to publishing and hence the main consideration in pricing, is a major change from the past (Carreiro, 2010). At the moment, once the original digital content is made, digital copies can be made with a click of a button. As such, accessing digital content has pushed the pricing of books to very low prices, especially since the cost of raw materials such as paper and ink is not a factor of pricing. In addition, in the current world, few people want to purchase and keep books in the long run. As such, the digitization of books has allowed the emergence of pricing models that are focused on renting or purchasing specific segments of a book for a specific purpose that the customer wants (Striphas, 2010). Despite these changes, print publishing is still the main form of book publishing. However, it will continue to reduce and possibly be eliminated in the end. The digitisation of book publishing has greatly affected how the book publishing business is carried out.
Conclusion
The media and cultural industries are important segments of any society since they guide how culturally relevant messages and contents are shared. The book publishing segment of the cultural industries has evolved immensely over the years over the last 5000 years since the first tablets and papyrus rolls were made in Egypt and Mesopotamia. The emergence of the printing press in the 15th century changed the publishing press and ushered in an era of mass publication of books. The emergence of desktop publishing, computers, and related technologies such as the internet has welcomed a new era of digital content, which has changed how book publishing is done. Currently, with a computer, the right publishing software, and the internet, it is easy to create books and share them online. Such trends call for a review of major aspects of book publishing such as copyright protection and pricing. The emergence of Kindle by Amazon and the Amazon online bookstore is a good example of how authors can protect and sell their publications. Pricing is a major aspect that has been influenced by the emergence of the digitisation of content. Currently, pricing must consider the reduced use of traditional raw materials such as paper and ink. Further, other pricing models such as book renting or sale of specific segments of books are gaining popularity. Overall, digitisation has influenced the book publishing industry both positively and negatively.
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