A Changing Landscape: the Role of Ebooks in Scholarly Communication

Our Journal of Perpetual Sorrow (Student Edition) (2011) 1 A Changing Landscape: The Role of EBooks in Scholarly Communication S.Gunderson School of Library, Archival, and Information Studies, University of British Introduction What does it take to become a monograph? Webster dictionary defines monograph as “a learned treatise on a small area of learning” also “a written account of a single thing”.1 This speaks to the intangible nature of the monograph, but what about its physical form? As a tangible product, mentioning a monograph is likely to conjure up images of hundred‐plus page ‘books’ complete with ink, paper, binding, and page numbers. Print publishing of monographs has stood as a respectable and meaningful form of communication for centuries now, yet the viable future of the hard copy now faces a formidable counterpart: the electronic book (hereafter referred to as the eBook). In this paper, the changing landscape of academic book publishing and distribution will be explored, namely by analyzing the emerging role of the eBook. At the heart of this paper is a simple notion, that much like the transition from print to electronic journals that has taken place since the 1990s, a similar transition from print monograph to eBook is already underway in scholarly communications, and is being driven by a number of forces that will be presented throughout this discussion. Without question, writing a monograph for print publication can be a critical academic achievement for scholars, particularly those pursuing tenured positions.2 Our Journal of Perpetual Sorrow (Student Edition) (2011) 1 This is just one of the many challenges that eBooks still face. Such questions and challenges will also be discussed in this paper. In the first section, a brief history of the eBook will be covered, and focus will be given to the question of whether eBooks are merely a passing fad. An examination of eBook popularity in the non‐scholarly realm will also be presented. The next section will deal with a host of issues facing the eBook industry, namely piracy, distribution concerns, preservation issues, and cost. After looking at these and other issues, an analysis of eBook in scholarly communities will be given. Finally, implications for academic libraries, highlighting the key advantages and disadvantages of eBooks will be covered. To assume that eBooks will soon replace print volumes in major academic libraries is both simplistic and naïve. EBooks do offer a number of efficiencies, and are constantly improving to make better use of modern technology, but they cannot be thought of a mere replacement of physical collections. The proactive librarian, however, benefits by keeping an open mind to new opportunities and platforms. EBooks have moved quickly to establish a role in academic library collections, and appear to be gaining in momentum. Indeed, a hybrid approach to monograph publication and dissemination has already begun. History and Background The concept of the electronic book is not recent one. Decades before the advent of modern computing and networked communications, the first true eBooks were created as part of Project Gutenberg, a “[…] visionary project launched by Michael Our Journal of Perpetual Sorrow (Student Edition) (2011) 1 Hart to create electronic versions of literary works and disseminate them worldwide.”3 From these humble beginnings, Project Gutenberg has continued to digitize out of copyright books, and now uses the web to disseminate its ongoing efforts. In Canada, Project Gutenberg continues to pursue its digitization agenda, and seeks to digitize any Canadian or international book that is in the Canadian public domain.4 Over the next two decades, despite regular advancements in computing technology, commercial publishers did not embrace eBooks. Finally, in 1994‐1995, commercial publishers took steps to enter the eBook arena, led by National Academy Press and MIT Press, who successfully began migrating many of their academic monographs into digital formats, and distributing these eBooks free of charge.5 As Marie Lebert outlines in her A Short History of eBooks, the 1990s were a period of rapid development and expansion for eBook publishing.6 By this point, the potential of eBook technologies was beginning to gain support. Writing in 1999, Mary Summerfield and Carol Mandel made the following observation about the potential of eBooks to the scholarly community: “On‐line books might enhance the scholarly process of research, dissemination of findings, teaching, and learning.” and that they may “[…] enable publishers, libraries, and scholars to reduce the costs of disseminating and using scholarship.”7 Over the past decade (2001‐2011), the growth of eBooks has steadily increased, particularly for trade retail eBooks. Demonstrating the rapid growth in digital publishing sales, the International Digital Publishing Forum, a leading eBook industry association, reports that the eBook industry has grown from a modest Our Journal of Perpetual Sorrow (Student Edition) (2011) 1 industry (with $5‐10 million in annual US eBook sales), to an emerging megaindustry with billion dollar annual sales becoming a very real possibility.8 Few predicted the rapid upsurge in demand for eBooks prior to the current wave of popularity that eBooks now enjoy. Demand is so high, in fact, that eBooks have, as of April 2011, officially begun outselling print books sold through Amazon.com at a ratio of 105 eBooks for every 100 print books (hardcover and paperback).9 Despite the surging sales numbers and popularity of eBooks, even proponents remain skeptical of its ability to fully ‘cross over’ into all book categories, as explained by Forbes blogger Alex Knapp: “[…] I love reading on my Kindle. But when it comes to children’s books, reference materials, and serious use in academia, I think that print books will be dominant for a long while.”10 This leads to the obvious question: are eBooks here to stay as the new reading medium of choice, or are they little more than a passing fad? While the jury is still out regarding the sustainability of the current eBook sales frenzy, it is hard to imagine readers abandoning their eReaders anytime soon, especially considering the potential technological improvements that future generation eReaders are likely to offer. Another driver of eBook popularity that seems unlikely to falter in the near future is the advent of tablet computers such as the iPad and Blackberry Playbook, both featuring numerous apps and programs for eBook compatibility. After nearly four decades of development, eBooks have finally arrived on the publishing landscape. The challenges will be to maintain the momentum already built up, and to capitalize on new opportunities, namely further expansion into scholarly publishing and greater prominence in academic libraries, including Our Journal of Perpetual Sorrow (Student Edition) (2011) 1 reference services. As a 2008 Library and Archives Canada report on eBook publishing in Canada states: “The consumer behaviour, technology platforms, and sales channels that the eBook market needs to thrive are increasingly in place.”11 The biggest challenge facing the eBook, according to this same report, however, is the reconciliation of diverging perspectives on digital rights management (DRM), and who actually owns an eBook after a purchase is made.12 Now, a closer look at this and other opportunities and challenges of eBook acceptance will now be presented. Challenges and Opportunities EBooks, given their technological adaptability, have the potential to overcome many of the traditional barriers faced by print books. Printing a hardcover or paperback monograph, particularly for books with limited commercial appeal, is a costly endeavor. When a publisher agrees to publish 1000 copies of a new monograph, beyond forecasting market demand, there is little guarantee that each of these 1000 copies will be purchased by libraries or individuals. EBooks, however, are not printed in advance of sales. This leads to two advantages, first: an eBook publication should never run out of copies for sale, and second: that eBooks can stay ‘in print’, or available for immediate purchase much longer than print books can, given their infinite supply and reduced cost of online distribution. Quite simply, eBooks won’t be collecting dust while awaiting purchase on bookstore shelves, or in supplier warehouses. Once a book goes out of print, publishing a second or third run of copies to meet demand not originally forecasted Our Journal of Perpetual Sorrow (Student Edition) (2011) 1 does not happen overnight. In a world where ‘hot topic’ issues come and go within a few weeks, the quick reflexes of an eBook publication can (in theory) allow older books to be immediately matched with market demands, rather than forcing readers to wait for new copies to hit the bookshelves months later, by which time their interest on the subject may have waned. These and other cost efficiencies of eBooks are just a few of the reasons why publishers have been so willing to embrace this new form of reading material. EBooks and eReaders, meanwhile, are not without their limitations. Ironically, it is the same technological drivers (tablet computing and wireless internet access) that threaten to ‘pull the carpet’ out from under the eBook publishing marketplace. Highlighting this, within weeks of the iPad release in North America, a noticeable spike in unofficial eBook downloads was observed, with many attributing the rise in eBook piracy to the unpopular DRM

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