1 Books Chapter 6 © 2009, The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

2 CHAPTER OUTLINE History Books in the Digital Age Defining Features of Books Organization of the Book Industry Ownership in the Book Industry Producing the Book Economics Feedback

3 HISTORY Early books were hand-written and lavishly decorated, often by monks Gutenberg printed his first book in about –King Henry VIII saw the political potential and required printers to have government approval

4 Colonial America Early printers were often their own writers and publishers Religious and sentimental themes dominated Political pamphlets became popular around the time of the Revolution

5 The Penny Press Era Changing print technology and increased literacy Public education, penny papers, increase in libraries Uncle Tom’s Cabin

6 The Paperback Boom Civil War soldiers “Dime novels” Pirated editions of European best sellers

7 The Early 20th Century Move toward commercialization –Media conglomerates –Authors represented by agents –Increased attention to profit –Mass audiences and mass marketing tools

8 Postwar Books: Paperbacks and Consolidation Low-priced (25 cents) paperback books Subject matter and writing quality varied widely New audience exposed to paperbacks –More leisure time –More disposable income –Renewed interest in education Consolidation brought more financial and management resources to industry

9 The Contemporary Book Industry Consolidation continues The Internet changed how books were sold More outlets are selling books Publishers cautiously exploring digital developments Content of modern books varied

10 BOOKS IN THE DIGITAL AGE The digital revolution has not yet revolutionized the book industry. Introduction of the e-book – technical problems and limited availability of titles –e-books have the potential to reshape the industry

11 Printing on Demand Less radical than e-books Select the title you want, and it is printed for you. Could result in more special interest books Printing on demand and the e-book will probably never replace traditional books

12 Mobile Books e-books are just as portable as traditional books –Can be read on a dedicated reader or other handheld devices

13 User-Generated Content Publishers are beginning to explore user- generated content. –Wiki novel –e-books based on individual postings

14 DEFINING FEATURES OF BOOKS The least “mass” of the mass media Can have profound impact on society –Uncle Tom’s Cabin –Silent Spring Among the oldest and most enduring of mass media

15 ORGANIZATION OF THE BOOK INDUSTRY The book publishing industry can be divided into three segments

16 Publishers Segmented based on target market –Trade books –Religious books –Professional books –Book clubs and mail order –Mass market paperback –Elementary and secondary textbooks –Higher education –Audio books –E-books –Other

17 Distributors Traditional method –Publisher to wholesaler/distributor to retailer, where consumer purchases it Online method –Consumer selects book from web site, and it’s shopped directly to the consumer from the seller’s warehouse

18 Retailers Big chains dominate traditional booksellers Major online retailers are not far behind Other retail channels –College bookstores –Direct-to-consumer booksellers Book clubs Mail-order sales

19 OWNERSHIP IN THE BOOK INDUSTRY The book industry is dominated by conglomerates with interests in other media. The top five companies are Pearson Publishing, Random House, Harper- Collins, Simon & Schuster, and Time- Warner Publishing

20 PRODUCING THE BOOK A variety of people work together to produce a book

21 Departments and Staff Editorial Department Production Department Marketing Department General Administration (Business)

22 Publishing the Book Three main sources of book ideas –Agent recommendations –Unsolicited books (slush) –Ideas generated by editors

23 ECONOMICS Modest growth in recent years Two main sources of income –Book sales –Subsidiary rights Two main categories of expenses –Manufacturing the book –Operating expenses

24 FEEDBACK Best-seller lists –New York Times –USA Today –Publisher’s Weekly Nielsen BookScan

25 Audiences People over 40 Young adults showing decline in book reading Book reading positively correlated with income and age