What is an ebook? Is there an accepted definition of what we are talking about when we say or write “ebook?”
The term ”ebook” has generally been associated with two things. First, there is the actual book (i.e. content) that one is reading in a digital form, that is the ebook. Second, the device built specifically to read an ebook, using a handheld computer with screen, is called the ebook reader. The Amazon Kindle and Sony Reader Digital Book are the two best-known examples of ebook readers. For years (decades actually), there has been a movement to read ebooks from computers, laptops, or other existing devices, but that business never really matured.
This ebook industry we are talking about here, which will grow significantly over the coming year, has been emerging for the last 1-2 years. It includes a whole new generation of technology specifically designed to enhance the experience of reading an ebook. 2009 will birth this dynamic new industry, which includes ebook readers, ebooks, and associated products and services to support the publishing, distribution, and reading of ebooks using versatile, mobile, eye-friendly ebook readers.
2009 is the “Year of the Ebook.” Here, in no particular order, is why:
1. NEW EBOOK READERS WILL MAKE LAPTOPS AND IPHONES LOOK OLD
In 2009, we will see a merging of digital technologies and plastics, that will bring us lighter, more durable and versatile, and more attractive devices for reading ebooks. These ebook readers will be a significant aesthetic leap over the existing laptops or cell phones we use. They will not only be mobile, they will be office-friendly, home-friendly, and best of all, café-friendly.
2. CRITICAL MASS HAS BEEN ACHIEVED, NOW ITS ABOUT GROWTH
The ebook reader is on a similar sales path as the iPod was during its first couple years on the market. It took the iPod about two years to reach a million users. The ebook is roughly now at half a million users who have bought ebook readers in the last year, and another half a million users who are using existing devices, primarily the iPod/iPhone.
3. MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WILL EXPERIENCE DIGITAL INK FOR THE FIRST TIME AND THEY WILL LOVE IT
Less than 1% of the people who use the Internet have personally experienced the new digital ink technologies, which make reading significantly more pleasant. The primary supplier of the new technology behind the ebook readers is a company named E Ink. Watch for a sea-change in opinion about ebook readers once more people have used E Ink based products.
4. IF THERE’S ONE THING EVERYONE WANTS NOW, IT’S COMFORT
Books and ebooks, in all their forms, are comfort food for the mind. Books allow you to pause for a moment, think, remember, and reflect, at your own pace. They are stable and personal. Whether its reading Siddhartha for the 11th time, or finding a new cookbook, ebooks will deliver well-timed comfort for the intellectually needy.
5. WHAT YOU WANT, WHEN YOU WANT IT? – NOW THAT’S PRACTICAL
Any book, anytime, anywhere? Need to find that favorite passage from Alice in Wonderland for your kids Right Now? How about some quiet poetry before you make that dynamic PowerPoint presentation? A chapter from your college accounting textbook? The practical advantages of ebooks will outweigh the emotional attachment to books.
6. DO YOU WANT TO DOWNLOAD 1 MOVIE OR 1,000 EBOOKS?
It takes roughly the same amount of time, bandwidth, storage, however you want to measure it, to download 1,000 ebooks, as it does to download one movie. That means, that the cost of delivery is cheap, which benefits everyone. No new fancy networks need to be built. While there is no guarantee that ebook prices will be less than their book counterparts, there is at least hope.
7. THE MONEY PEOPLE: COST OF ENTRY IS STILL LOW, POTENTIAL HIGH
In a couple years, when the ebook industry is more developed, it will cost a lot more money for companies to enter this industry. 2009 is the perfect year for the venture capitalists (who will have all refined their approaches but not their end goal!), corporate investors, even angel investors in smaller opportunities to risk money in hopes of being a player in a high growth market.
8. A MILLION EBOOKS AT YOUR FINGERTIPS: IT’S THE “OTHER INTERNET”
Most books have gone through rigorous conceptual, proofing, editing, and completion processes. Each has its own unique content, wrapped in a tight tangible package. Think of a million ebooks like a million websites, each with about 200 pages, where each page of the book can be directly accessed. Collectively, all these ebooks represent a great new source of information.
9. THE BOOK IS JUST A FORMAT, NO DIFFERENT THAN A CD, VHS, OR DVD
Yes we loved those liner notes on the LP’s, then the tiny liner notes on the CD’s, but by and large we have now essentially detached ourselves from LP’s, and soon CD’s. The book is just a delivery format, that has lasted an amazing 500+ years, but at its heart, the book is just there to deliver the content, something ebooks can do much better.
10. ONE WORD: POWER
Power consumption for ebook readers is significantly lower than for the laptops or cell phones we now use. You can sit there for a couple weeks of continuous reading before even thinking about recharging your ebook reader. Compare that to whatever device you are currently carrying around with you.
11. AUTHORS, PUBLISHERS, AND DISTRIBUTORS BENEFIT FINANCIALLY
Already companies are reporting higher profit margins on ebooks versus books. There are so many direct costs involved with books, that now disappear with ebooks, including printing, shipping, and handling. There are also the indirect costs, all the people needed to support that type of operation. Ebooks take away those costs and overhead.
12. PLAYING AROUND WITH BOOKS IS OK, READING THEM IS BETTER
If you want to spend your time getting in the car, driving to the bookstore, or perusing a library, that’s fine. But be truthful about what that time is, book hunting is NOT time spent with a book. If you can find yourself immersed within a book faster, because of ebook search and download software, well then, it means you have now spent more time within a book.
13. A TRULY GREEN TECHNOLOGY – WITHOUT EVEN TRYING
Even though there has been a lot of talk about technologies “saving trees”, really most of it has been just that – talk. Over 20 years ago, this author was trumpeting CD-ROM as the technology to “save the trees” only to find out that people using CD-ROM’s liked to print pages. Now, with advanced digital ink for ebooks, no need to print all those pages for better reading, because the better reading is on the ebook reader.
14. WITH A CHALLENGING ECONOMY, COMPANIES WILL LOOK TO ENTER EBOOK BUSINESS
How many companies out there are right now saying, what markets can we move into that are growing and where we can really compete? From consumer electronics to phones and business equipment, many companies can reconfigure existing resources to build ebook readers, peripherals, software, and services. That means more investment in ebooks, and more choices for consumers.
15. TRY IT ONCE, YOU’RE HOOKED FOR GOOD
The first time you get one of your favorite ebooks downloaded via wireless connection onto your ebook reader in less than a minute, guaranteed it won’t be your last time. It’s an amazing experience, to suddenly be reading a book, maybe a new book, or a book you have not seen in 5 years, all with no fuss. Order the book, have one sip of tea, and the book is ready.
16. THE IPHONE, NINTENDO DS WILL INSTANTLY EXPOSE AND PROMOTE EBOOKS
There are existing devices that do not have the current digital ink technology, but can instantly offer their customers access to books. Though the readability may be an issue, this still serves a purpose of exposing millions of people to the concept of reading ebooks.
17. RIGHTS FIGHTS: IT’S ALL-GOOD WITH EBOOKS
With music and movies, there were (and still are) hell-raising arguments between companies and industries involving rights. Books are much cleaner, they are a simpler intellectual property with fewer stakeholders in the actual work. Books are usually written by one person, compare that to the large complex teams creating movies or music.
18. THE HUGE NUMBER OF FREE EBOOKS AVAILABLE
There are hundreds of thousands of well-known books in the public domain, being offered for free, right now, legally. Whereas we rarely listen to music or watch movies over 50 years old, in fact many classic books that we love were written a long time ago, and still have their charm or use. Think Alice in Wonderland or The Art of War.
19. A NEW GENERATION OF INDEPENDENT AUTHORS WILL NOW COME FORWARD
Writing and editing 200 pages is hard work, no matter how you look at it – book or ebook. However, just like in music, the theory is that some good authors have not been able to get published because of “the system.” Now, they can Stick It To The Man, independently publish an ebook, and get broad exposure for very little money. Caution: again like in music, independent does not mean “good” – it merely offers a new vehicle for new voices.
20. IT’S THE CONTENT, STUPID
Really the book or ebook is just a transmission device. It transmits a long and maybe heartwarming, or possibly informative message – from the author to you. Let’s not forget that. Whatever gets you absorbed into the content in a more dynamic, efficient, informative way, will benefit you. In those departments, ebooks score high. It’s the content, stupid.
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