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Selling to Libraries in Southeast Asia

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Selling to Libraries in Southeast Asia WHITE PAPER | OCTOBER 2014 SELLING TO ACADEMIC LIBRARIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA ACCURATE COMMUNICATIONS FOR PUBLISHERS WHITE PAPER: SELLING TO LIBRARIES IN SOUTHEAST ASIA JUNE 2015 © ACCUCOMS 2015 www.accucoms.com [email protected] CONTENTS I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................................... 2 II. SOUTHEAST ASIA MARKET & ECONOMIC OUTLOOK ......................................................................... 2 III. MARKET OVERVIEW BY COUNTRY ....................................................................................................... 6 1. Singapore ................................................................................................................................................................... 6 2. Malaysia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6 3. Thailand ...................................................................................................................................................................... 7 4. Indonesia ..................................................................................................................................................................... 8 5. Philippines ................................................................................................................................................................... 8 6. Vietnam ....................................................................................................................................................................... 9 IV. TOP UNIVERSITIES IN ASIA .................................................................................................................. 9 V. SURVEY RESEARCH METHOD AND RESULTS ...................................................................................... 11 VI. CONCLUSION ...................................................................................................................................... 18 1 I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The majority of western publishers are familiar with selling to traditionally core markets in Europe and North America. However, emerging markets within Southeast Asia present a new set of challenges. Cultural and economic differences require publishers to adapt sales techniques if they are to be successful. To help publishers evaluate the opportunities emerging markets in the region may offer, and to provide an overview of how best to sell to them, ACCUCOMS has undertaken market research in the form of this white paper. We conducted surveys via phone and email to 24 librarians in the region. Librarians, senior librarians, research librarians and medical librarians answered 13 questions in total. The majority of librarians interviewed (79.2%) were academic librarians active mainly in the social sciences, humanities, engineering/technology and medical fields. This white paper will firstly examine the market and economic outlook of the Southeast Asia region and will then discuss the outcome of the survey and the needs and wishes of librarians. Lastly, it will provide useful suggestions for publishers wishing to bring their products to market in the region. II. SOUTHEAST ASIA MARKET & ECONOMIC OUTLOOK Southeast Asia or Southeastern Asia is a sub region of Asia, consisting of countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia.[1] Southeast Asia comprises two geographic regions: Mainland Southeast Asia, also known as Indochina, comprising Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar (Burma), Thailand, and Vietnam; Maritime Southeast Asia, comprising Brunei, Malaysia, East Timor, Indonesia, Philippines, and Singapore. The major two religions are Islam and Buddhism, followed by Christianity. However, a wide variety of religions are found throughout the region, including Hinduism and various animist- influenced practices. Furthermore, the region has an area of approximately 4,000,000 km2 (1.6 million square miles) in total. As of 2014, 636 million people occupy Southeast Asia and more than a fifth of those people (125 million) reside on the Indonesian island of Java, the most densely populated island in the world. Indonesia is in fact the most populous country in the region with more than 250 million people and it is also the 4th most populous country in the world. Additionally, 30 million people of Chinese origin live in other Southeast Asian countries and not in their home country of China. These 30 million Chinese mostly reside on Christmas Island and in Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and also as the Hoa people in Vietnam1. According to the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) iLibrary2, growth will remain robust in the Southeast Asian region in the medium term and it will be at a 1 Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southeast_Asia/ 2 Source: http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/saeo-2014-en/ 2 pace comparable to the pre-global financial crisis. The real GDP growth rate in Southeast Asia is projected to average 5.4% per annum between 2014 and 2018, in comparison to 5.5% from 2000 to 2007. While each country’s policy objective may focus on high-quality sustainable growth, the policy challenges faced will depend largely on each country’s specific situation and level of development. Below, find a summarized medium-term educational policy adopted by each of the major countries within Southeast Asia: Indonesia – aims to improve access to education, particularly for low-income households Malaysia – aims to improve the overall quality of education Singapore – aims to strengthen lifelong learning to increase labor market flexibility Thailand – aims to upgrade human capital by improving the national curriculum and overall teaching standards. Southeast Asia comprises the countries below with a combined total GDP of over $3,828 trillion, a total population of around 636 million people and over 10 major languages spoken throughout the region. Expenditure on education and the total number of tertiary institutions within each country are also indicated in the below table3: Country Population (In GDP No. of Education Literacy Million) (purchasing Tertiary Expenditure Age 15 power parity) Education and up Institutions Brunei 422,675 $22.25 billion 6 3.5% of GDP (July 2014 est.) (2013 est.) (2013) 95.4% Burma 55,746,253 $111.1 billion 5 0.8% of GDP 92.7% (2013 est.) (2011) Cambodia 15,458,332 $39.64 billion 39 2.6% of GDP 73.9% (2013 est.) (2010) Indonesia 253,609,643 $1.285 trillion 410 3.6% of GDP 92.8% (July 2014 est.) (2013 est.) (2012) Laos 6,803,699 $20.78 billion 4 2.8% of GDP 72.7% (July 2014 est.) (2013 est.) (2010) Malaysia 30,073,353 $525 billion 92 5.9% of GDP 93.1% (July 2014 est.) (2013 est.) (2011) Philippines 107,668,231 $454.3 billion 277 2.7% of GDP 95.4% (July 2014 est.) (2013 est.) (2009) Singapore 5,567,301 $339 billion 49 3% of GDP (2013) 95.9% (July 2014 est.) (2013 est.) Thailand 67,741,401 $673 billion 188 7.6% of GDP 93.5% (2013 est.) (2012) Vietnam 93,421,835 $358.9 billion 121 6.3% of GDP 93.4% (July 2014 est.) (2013 est.) (2010) 3 Source: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bx.html/ 3 Source: http://www.webometrics.info/en/Asia/Burma%20/%20Myanmar%20/ Source: International Monetary Fund, World Economic Outlook Database, 2010 4 In Southeast Asia the acquisition budget for resources at academic libraries is mostly managed by the Head of Technical Services, the Head of Acquisitions, the Chief Librarian or the Library Director. Moreover, two main kinds of English-language learners exist in Southeast Asia. Firstly, second- language variations of English are employed in countries that were formerly colonies or protectorates of English-speaking powers (Britain in the case of Brunei, Malaysia, and Singapore; the United States in the case of the Philippines). Secondly, you will also find foreign- language varieties of the English language in Cambodia/Kampuchea, Indonesia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. In the first case, students in English-medium schools are not only taught English as a language but they are also taught other subjects in English. English-medium education in this context is often seen as the path to better-paid employment and in some cases to higher education leading to professional employment. As a result, English has become a prestigious language predominantly used by the elite in the Southeast Asia region. The greater the extent to which English is used and the more contexts in which it is utilized within these countries, the more it has become indigenized by locals. This is most apparent in Singapore where, since 1987, English is employed as the main language of the education system, and there are currently many native speakers of Singapore English4. In a recent research paper published by the Education Department in New Zealand in September 2013 (Southeast Asia and International Education: A Strategic Discussion 2013−2017)5, the following points in terms of education within the region are highlighted: Ø Combined regional annual GDP growth of 5.5% is predicted over the next 5 years Ø Dynamic, vibrant and growing, the Southeast Asia region has significant growth capacity and developing economies are expected to outpace China and India Ø Globally, Southeast Asia represents a market of more than 600 million people, with a combined GPD of US$ 2.7 trillion Ø Increasing
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