Experimentation and Innovation in U.S. Publishing Today: Findings from the Book Industry Study Group

In February 2008 the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) conducted a survey of U.S. publishers to determine the extent of technology-driven innovation and experimentation. The survey findings were published alongside a set of 10 case studies in May 2008 as “From experimentation to innovation in the digital age—case studies from the North American Book Industry 2008”. This article, written by Michael Healy, Executive Director of the BISG, summarizes the circumstances that led to the survey and shares the key findings.     

AAP-BISG book industry data

Book publishing is a relatively small and extremely volatile industry. For this reason, it is difficult to collect data and formulate statistics. This article describes the statistics program of the Association of American Publishers and the Trends Program of the Book Industry Study Group, including information on how data are collected, organized, and published. Measures taken to ensure confidentiality are also described.     

The Challenges of Higher Education Digital Publishing

The current generation of students uses computers, tablets, dedicated e-readers, and smart phones more than any previous student group. Student adoption of Web apps, social media of all kinds, computer games, as well as learning and desktop software is remarkably high making them not just computer literate but often digital experts. However, although they spend a great deal of time using the latest digital devices, 75% of students surveyed still prefer the traditional printed textbook over a digital counterpart, according to the ongoing research project Student Attitudes Toward Content in Higher Education from the Book Industry Study Group (BISG). The data indicate that the current print value proposition is not meeting the needs of students. In particular, the price/value relationship is not sufficient to justify required adoptions or to preclude students seeking alternative methods for obtaining their content and pedagogy. Next-generation digital learning products have tremendous potential to offer students individualized solutions to their learning challenges enabling them to reduce their study time and to improve their grades. Their levels of customizability and interactivity are appealing to both students and instructors.     

11. JOURNALISM

THE AMERICAN BOOK BUYERS STUDY “conducted and prepared”; by Bruno and Ridgway Research Associates for Publishers Weekly and the Book Industry Study Group (New York: Cahners Publishing Company, September 1997—$295.00, paper [additional copies $60.00 for BISG voting Members, $80.00 for BISG non‐voting members], ISBN 0–940016–68–0, approximately 550 pages [various pagings], tables, charts, appendixes)

BOOKS, BRICKS &; BYTES: LIBRARIES IN THE TWENTY‐FIRST CENTURY, edited by Stephen R. Graubard and Paul LcClerc (New Brunswick, NJ and London: Transaction, 1998—$24.95 paper, ISBN 1–56000–986–1, 361 pp.)

BOOKNOTES: AMERICA'S FINEST AUTHORS ON READING, WRITING, AND THE POWER OF IDEAS by Brian Lamb (New York: Times Books, 1997— $15.00, paper, ISBN 0–8129–3029–0, 426 pp., illustrations, appendix, index)

EXPERIMENTATION AND COLLABORATION: CREATING SERIALS FOR A NEW MILLENNIUM: Proceedings of the North American Serials Interest Group 12th Annual Conference edited by Charlene N. Simser and Michael A. Somers (New York: Haworth Press, 1998—$69.95, ISBN 0–7890–0525–5, 442 pp., index)     

U.S. book returns, 1984–1989

Between 1984 and 1989, the U.S. book industry drowned in a recorded $7.88 billion of returns: 23.87 percent of all books published during those years were returned to publishers by wholesalers and booksellers for full credit. This massive return of books undermined the stability of the book industry, causing many publishers to question the efficacy of a system that failed to operate successfully during a period of exceptionally stable business conditions, free from high rates of interest and inflation, recession, or a war. In this study the author addresses the book return phenomenon by: (1) analyzing statistics about the U.S. book industry and its twelve key market segments; (2) evaluating possible causes of the increase in returns; and (3) proposing some suggestions to reduce returns. Albert N. Greco also serves on the board of directors of the Book Industry Study Group, publisher ofBook Industry Trends, 1991.     

The case for reader research

The author argues for a new attitude and praxis in consumer publishing that entails ongoing reader research. This change would reduce failure rates, increase profits, and better serve publishers’ cultural and economic objectives. Such studies would encompass both basic research and research on specific titles. John P. Dessauer founding editor ofBook Research Quarterly, has been a bookseller, publisher, and book club editor, official statistician for AAP, AAUP, ABA, and NACS; co-founder of BISG and editor ofBook Industry Trends from 1977 to 1988; contributing editor ofPublishers Weekly from 1971 to 1988; author ofBook Publishing: A Basic Introduction (Continuum, 1989)     

Publishing Rights: An Untapped Opportunity

Through its Rights Committee, the Book Industry Study Group develops, maintains and advocates for industry-wide best practices designed to support the transmission of a defined set of rights information between trading partners. A survey recently identified six challenges related to rights management. It further found that publishers and other stakeholders are looking to justify the return on investment in solutions offered by rights solutions providers.     

Shifting Sales Channels

The Book Industry Study Group and The Idea Logical Company carried out an online survey to capture publishers’ comments on how market conditions were changing and what they are doing differently as a result of the economic pressures in the consumer market. About 250 individuals responded to the online survey. Interviews were carried out of more than a dozen executives at large and small publishers and their accounts to get further insights. The goal was to identify what are the sales conditions for trade book publishers today and what publishers are doing to change sales and marketing and even editorial practices to accommodate changing times. What we have learned from that joint effort is reflected in this article.     

Book Reviews

Book reviewed in this article: Museums, Objects and Collections: A Cultural Study By Susan M. Pearce Museum Governance: Mission, Ethics, Policy By Marie C. Malaro Mining the Museum: An Installation by Fred Wilson Edited by Lisa G. Corrin     

Innovation is Iteration: Thinking Next to the Box

An account of the process of constant experimentation that drives our industry-leading newsletters and web site; the lessons behind our entrepreneurial experiences that should be meaningful to many within book publishing; and suggestions for how publishers of all sizes can employ a similar mindset in getting closer to readers and leveraging their natural assets for success in today’s rapidly changing marketplace. This paper was presented during the “Making Information Pay 2008” conference organized by the Book Industry Study Group, as a different kind of text as far as I am concerned than an essay. What I actually said the day of the presentation was undoubtedly somewhat different than what is written here.     

Copyright,E-books and the Unpredictable Future

The shift to e-books and digital publishing is challenging the basic models of copyright and contracts that underlie the functioning of book publishing—a mature business with 500 years of history—making it hard to predict what shape the business will take in the years to come. This article looks at two of those challenges: first, the tension between a fast-changing technological marketplace and the standard book contract that locks in book rights for life of copyright; and second, the specific complications presented by image rights. There are, however, first steps being taken to allow books to make the transition to the digital marketplace with all their rights information intact and easily accessible, facilitating future transactions between agents, publishers, and new trading partners. The final section looks at the work begun by the Book Industry Study Group to create a standardized rights framework for this purpose.     

浅谈现代通讯技术在省级图书馆古籍保护工作中的应用——以辽宁古籍保护中心构建QQ群平台为例

在简要介绍了QQ群和辽宁古籍保护中心的基础上,从资源上、技术上、内容上分析了QQ群在辽宁古籍保护中心应用的可行性及优势,总结了QQ群应用于古籍保护中心的主要功能.     

Best Practices for Supporting Hearing-Impaired Law Library Patrons

Abstract

This article is written by Mari Cheney, Assistant Director, Research and Instruction at Boley Law Library, Lewis & Clark Law School. She holds a MLIS from the University of Washington and a JD from American University, Washington College of Law.

This article enumerates challenges that hearing-impaired law library patrons may encounter when using the library and its resources, and ways academic librarians can increase accessibility.     

The Use of BISAC in Libraries as New Cases of Reader-Interest Classifications

In the recent years, several libraries in the United States have been experimenting with Book Industry Standards and Communications (BISAC), the classification system of the book industry, as an alternative to the Dewey Decimal Classification. Although rarely discussed, these cases of implementation of BISAC arguably resemble other past cases of replacement of traditional classifications that received the name of reader-interest classifications. In this article, a comparison of the BISAC cases to the previous cases of reader-interest classifications is taken in order to determine if the current application of BISAC to libraries is susceptible to the same problems, dangers, and ends as occurred in the past.     

Best Practices for Managing Organizational Diversity

Organizations with increasingly diverse workforces and customer populations face challenges in reaping diversity’s benefits while managing its potentially disruptive effects. This article defines workplace diversity and identifies best practices supporting planned and positive diversity management. It explores how academic libraries can apply diversity management best practices and provides a reading list for leaders and human resource managers wishing to optimize their organization’s approach to diversity.     

Special Section Introduction: Best Practices in Risk and Crisis Communication

There is a substantial gap between those people in the United States who identify as being favorable toward organ donation (~90%) and those registered as donors (~30%). A growing body of evidence suggests Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) offices are effective sites for facilitating higher organ donor registration rates on a national scale. The goal of the current study was to determine the utility and sustainability of a message immediacy approach, which draws from theoretical concepts such as priming and cues to action. Message immediacy requires individuals be: (a) exposed to a message that prompts an action, (b) in an environment where a prescribed action or behavior can be enacted, and (c) favorable toward the promoted behavior or action. Thirty-four Michigan counties, divided into three implementation groups, received campaigns in October (Group 1), November (Group 2), and December (Group 3) of 2009. Registration rates for three to six months after campaign implementation indicate that the on-site message prompts almost doubled registration rates in DMV offices. Additionally, preliminary cost-effectiveness evidence suggests message immediacy offers a relatively inexpensive campaign strategy.     

Developing a Best Practices Plan for Tutorials in a Multi-Library System

In 2010, the University of Iowa's library system administration created a task force to conduct a reevaluation of tools and spaces used for video tutorial creation across a multi-library system. Following this effort, a working group was charged with improving documentation and staff awareness of resources for developing video tutorials. The group observed that librarians were often independently creating videos that were variable in quality, lacked consistent branding, and were not often shared with others. This article will describe experiences at the Hardin Library for the Health Sciences at the University of Iowa in selecting video tutorial software, and striving to establish a more structured process, including team-developed guidelines, for tutorial creation in a multi-library system. Project limitations and areas for future work will also be presented.     

Developing Best Practices for Technical Services Cross-Institutional Collaboration

The OhioLINK CollaboraTeS Project was initiated to support cross-institutional collaborations by building a skills inventory and by defining collaborative best practices. This article discusses what was learned and defines best practices for collaboration. The authors recommend the creation of regional technical services skills inventories, and the application of management and financial best practices to collaborations. Librarians should be confident they possess these skills because many of them have been learned in other environments. Collaboration represents a bright future for libraries struggling to meet tight budgets. Providing the tools and best practices for collaboration makes it easier for libraries to participate.     

ONIX: Is there a return on investment for all publishers?

Summary What will be the future of ONIX? Some argue that wider industry acceptance will lead to increased efficiencies in the transfer of book data, which will ultimately benefit book sales. ONIX still has to overcome many challenges: its implementation cost is high, whole-salers and aggregators are still using different spreadsheets and information sources. Furthermore, MS Excel as an alternative solution is widely available and accepted by the industry. Small publishers need more education and a straightforward demonstration of ONIX’s return on investment. An outreaching of the helping hand of professional organizations is strongly suggested to foster the adoption process among small players. It is the role of the AAP and BISG to get their memberships to think about what is good for all members as a whole throughout the industry. As an organization BISG can recommend, educate, and promote the standard. It cannot, however, bring pressure or demand organizations use it. Publishers, retailers, and wholesalers make those decisions for themselves and quite apparently the majority do not yet see the rewards. Market players need to determine the cost versus benefit and as long as distributors and retailers agree on receiving other formats, ONIX will never take a strong hold in the marketplace. After all, publishers should compete against each other with good books and not with multiple computer codes.     

Success in a Parallel Universe,Perhaps with some Help from your DAD Digital Asset Distribution

A new digital distribution infrastructure is being created to parallel the structure in the physical world by which content is stored, distributed, and invoiced. Like in the physical world, book publishing will need fewer points of distribution than it has points of creation: there will be “distributors” handling the digital content of many publishers and some large publishers will handle the digital content of smaller ones. This system is just now taking shape and this paper defines the terms and enumerates some of the emerging players in this role. This paper was first presented during the “Making Information Pay 2007” on May 10, 2007 organized by the Book Industry Study Group (). The research completed will help any publisher with the task of finding a DAD. The research paper version of our work will be made available as a final White Paper, with conclusions and updated information by Klopotek Inc. that can be ordered at Klopotek.com