Think about this for a moment. E-readers have become commonplace and most books are offered digitally now. How long does it take before hacking your e-reader becomes as common as jailbreaking an ipod? How long before people are downloading their digital books from torrent sites? Authors who already get the short end of the stick with their publishers making most of the profit will suddenly face a situation where their profits sharply drop the same way it did in the music industry. Who would bother to write if they couldn't make a living on it and their work was just stolen?

Publishers should have run like hell in the opposite direction when digital books were suggested.

 

-----signature-----

I hate to rain on your day, but book piracy is already huge.

There are entire sites dedicated to pirating books. Most of them have new releases the day they come out. All of the old books are available as scans and the new books come in commercial e-book form.

There are freeware programs that can takes any ebook format and change it to another. It beats all of the protection they try to use and can even set them up for cell phones.

 

-----signature-----

just means things are further along than i thought.

if the publishers had a clue they would quit making digital copies for their books. at least its an option with books where it isn't with music. this is going to completely destroy the industry over the next 10 years if nothing changes.

 

-----signature-----

just like it completely destroyed the gaming industry, the music industry and the movie industry?

 

-----signature-----

Even in industries with massive piracy problems I don't think the numbers break 20% (I might be completely wrong, I can't recall what I was reading very well but I think the numbers were on PC gaming) and literature certainly will never have the problems music and video games have.

People who read tend to be better, wealthier and outside the demographic that does the majority of the piracy.

It is a problem but I don't think it will be that huge of a problem.

 

-----signature-----

I disagree.


I think the future is looking bright and shiny


In the future, people won't need publishers, or bookstores for that matter. people will publish their books by themselves through portals dedicated to books.


Quality control will be at the hands of the users.

 

-----signature-----

the interwebs and digital content has been a serious boom for music and film. there's zero reason to think this won't be the same for books. also, people were pirating books before publishers hopped on the digital express so if anything, them embracing it is ensuring they keep a lot of sales.

 

-----signature-----

also, i downloaded all the scott pilgram graphic novels. i got about half way through the first one and went this is really entertaining so i bought them and deleted the cbr files.

 

-----signature-----

Personally, when I finish my series, I would rather 500 people buy them and 10 million people download my books illegally, than have 20,000 people buy them. The point is to be read.

 

-----signature-----

They won't need them, but they won't go away. Frankly, the idea of a completely digital society where you just sit at home and do everything is disturbing. Even if I could sit at my computer and book shop I'd continue to go to the bookstores because it's simply easier to go through shelves and pick what looks interesting and read a few samples, not to mention the atmosphere and social side to it that you don't get at home. No storefronts would be great for shut-ins and people with social anxiety, but it'd otherwise just be a leap towards a fatter, lazier America (we're bad enough as is).

Besides, hard copies will always have a place whether you like it or not. I don't mind reading books on an e-Reader, but I'll still take a physical book any day. I also keep and collect my books, and collecting a file simply lacks the same appeal. So yeah, digital media may well take the forefront, I don't see it completely replacing and destroying physical media and the relevant storefronts. Besides, if that did happen in most industries there would be such a massive loss of jobs that our economy would bust.

Also, publishers will continue to have a role, though maybe a decreased one, which wouldn't be a bad thing. A publisher still offers edits and corrections as well as marketing and exposure that is a lot more difficult for a single author to manage on their own. A collection of authors under an entity that manages these things for the group will continue to provide a larger benefit to a self-published author.

 

-----signature-----