My mother has discovered the joys of e-books.
I’m much to blame for this, of course. I bought her books 1,2 and 4 of a series because Borders didn’t have the third in stock, and then mentioned that if she didn’t want to wait to have it delivered she could always read it online. She’s now purchased several e-books, and I’ve found it interesting to experience them through her eyes.
I asked her if she felt like they could ever replace paper books for her, and as I expected the answer was no. What surprised me was the reason she cited for it. She likes the format, and doesn’t mind reading books on her laptop – in fact, she finds that the reading is faster when she doesn’t have to flip pages. She enjoys being able to buy books instantly, and also likes paying $9.99 for a book that is only out in hardcover (with a $25 price tag).
The primary reason that e-books won’t entirely replace her paper book collection is because she can’t easily share them with others.
I found that very interesting. It’s true that traditionally books are often a social experience; when we read a fantastic book we often pass it on to friends and family so that they too can enjoy it, and discuss it afterwards. And, with their current form and DRM policy, it is difficult for most users to legally share e-books – much like the issues the music industry has seen during its digitalization.
It’s no secret that e-books are gaining market share. eMarketer reports that Amazon Kindle revenues are on pace to nearly quadruple in 2009 compared to 2008, and accounted for approximately 10% of total North American book units sold in Q1 2009. That’s a big deal for an industry that barely existed a few years ago.
However, the Kindle faces some challenges. Amazon books can only be read on the Kindle device, which currently features a high price point ($359-$489), or on the iPhone (which still claims only about 5% of global smartphone market share). The $9.99 price for many bestsellers has also proved to be an issue for many consumers, who assume that the printing of a book makes up the majority of its production cost and therefore e-books should be much cheaper. And, Amazon has not currently addressed the inherent social nature of books – yes, you can “share” books with Kindle users if they are all on the same account, but there’s no way to digitally “lend” a book to a friend as with a hard copy. 65% of consumers stated that they still have no interest in e-books, and DRM could potentially be a large obstacle in shrinking this number.
It will be interesting to see if Google addresses this when they enter the e-book marketplace. They already have a major competitive advantage over Amazon in that Google e-books will be viewable on all devices with Internet access. Will they be able to grow e-book market share beyond the Kindle’s capabilities?
In most ways digitalization is gravitating towards more social connectivity than ever before. Internet users can easily keep in touch with high school friends that would have been long forgotten otherwise; connect with people with shared interests across the globe; express their opinion to the world and discuss it with others. Yet, the e-book industry in its current form is countering the social makeup of the Internet. What’s in store next for the world’s readers?
