Digital Publishing The Main Focus Of New York Book Expo

 

There is a huge transformation going on in book publishing industry, which is quite similar to the transformation that affected the music industry during the last decade.

This transformation and the increasing influence of digital publishing and eBooks was the main focus of attention during the recent New York book expo.

Amid this changing atmosphere, many conventional book publishers and retailers have been forced out of business.

Among them is included Borders Group which was once the second largest US book retailer and one of the pioneers of brick-and-mortar book superstores.

The retailer liquidated its 40 years old business in September last year after failing to cope with the onslaught of competition by major digital retailers such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

During the annual three-day book expo, digital book publishers and retailers had a prominent position. Various noteworthy authors such as Zadie Smith, Jo Nesbo and Michael Chabon were also present at the eve.

The main concern during the event was to accept the new trends of digital publishing and find better ways for publishers, writers and retailers.

Due to the importance of digital publishing, retailers such as Kobo, who were previously given a place at Expo’s corner, were now placed in the middle of the floor next to the major publishers such as Random House.

Todd Humphrey of Kobo said that “Last year, the publishing industry as a whole felt like it was a bit on its heels. This year there were a lot more smiles.

People are realizing, things are moving to digital, people need to adjust.”

Over the last couple of years, the sales of eBooks have soared at an impressive pace. In 2011, the net sales revenue from eBooks was $335.9 million, up from $328.3 million in 2010.

However, the sales volume is constantly accelerating with the passage of time.

Self-publishing aspect of digital publishing has also opened up doors for new and aspiring writers to publish their work without any problems.

The domain of digital publishing, however, and direct marketing by authors is still in constant evolution.