Book Fair Exhibitors Reveal Potential of New E-readers
Several companies revealed prototypes of their own electronic reading devices at the Frankfurt Book Fair, showing that the devices could be gaining traction among the digital media market.
The gadgets, small and light enough to fit into a handbag, can eliminate the need to carry around books and newspapers by accessing texts from the Internet to be read on a display screen at the user’s convenience. Some also come with wi-fi connection.
Technology research firm iSuppli predicts that global e-book display revenue will grow to $291 million in 2012 from $3.5 million in 2007.
Sales of the devices have been on the rise, but some experts believe that their growth could be affected by their high price tag, especially during a slumping economy.
"They have become mainstream in the sense that they are a genuine consumer product for which there is real appetite, so this is not the province of geeks any longer," said John Makinson, Chief Executive of Penguin publishers.
Makinson said Penguin was now publishing all new titles both as printed books and e-books and was digitalizing its backlist.
E-readers are mostly being used by scientists, but most consumers could benefit from its portability, according to exhibitors.
Green enthusiasts may also be swayed by the argument for e-readers, as they are not backlit, use little energy and could contribute to reducing paper consumption.
While some experts see the high price of e-readers as a deterrent for most consumers, many see the mobile phone as a better forum for digital content.
"South African publishers … told me they expect the mobile to be the next big thing to read. Everybody has a mobile in South Africa, so they are preparing content for these mobiles," said Juergen Boos, director of the Frankfurt Book Fair.
"An ebook-reader costs $300, $400. There is not a market (there) for that," he said.
In Japan, short stories specially written for cellphones are already being sent to readers in installments, and Apple’s iPhone also allows users to read their novels on a mobile.
"Increasingly, you’re going to simply download from the Internet to whichever device that’s your preferred point for reading those books," said Alan Adler, chairman of the American Publishers’ Association copyright committee.
Still, for many traditional readers, the portability offered by the electronic alternative isn’t going to be enough to convert them from the real thing.
"When I look at the standard of today’s technology, then I can’t imagine using an e-reader, no," said Nobel-Prize winning author Orhan Pamuk, who has collected 70,000 tomes in his Istanbul library.
"But one day … when technology manages to create the perfume of books, of old books, then yes, maybe."
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