For any avid reader this is one of the burning questions in mind given in the present times. Last year Amazon reported that Kindle books have officially overtaken our paperbacks and hardcovers and it looks like the trend would get stronger day by day. Well, to face the facts printed material is not getting any cheaper due to the continuous pressure which is escalating the prices of natural resources which affects the industry as a whole. It’s time to take a closer look at this phenomenon which may or may not turn our regular books into valuable or collectible articles.
In a recent internet survey of 2143 respondents, 23.2% voted for Ebooks, 42% voted for physical books while the rest felt that both have their advantages.
Quick Highlights on some of the key characteristics of both these mediums which will determine the trend in the long run
Ebooks
- Ebooks offer “digital versatility” to the reader such as adding bookmarks, notes, audio read outs, search, annotation etc at a press of a button which a regular book does not.
- Ebooks are lighter and easily portable (try carrying 2000 titles of regular books in your backpack!) and moreover saves considerable space in your study
- Instant access and easy distribution- Can be directly downloaded saving a trip to the store or library and not to mention the availability factor of a hot seller which is out of stock in print
- One of the most important factors- “Go Green” – We have dented our rainforests enough and ebooks can save millions of trees in the years to come
- Economical than the physical option though the gadget or the reader definitely expensive in general (and a typical book shelf technically)
Regular Books and Other Printed Media
- Availability of titles and especially materials yet to be digitized
- Reusability and shareabilty are a huge advantage that makes regular printed material “unobseletable”
- You can pick up a book anywhere without the need of electricity, battery or bandwidth
- The psychological magic of the physical book mesmerizes some which cannot be replaced with the digital form
- You can drop a book to floor and it will still “function”, which may not be the case with your tablet
There are various factors which are pros and cons for both these mediums and time will tell if we will still ride to the corner bookstore to pick up the new bestseller!
Vijay Narayanan - Visit www.privateequitygcc.com for insightful PE related research on the GCC markets.
