Link This |
Email this |
Blog This |
Comments (1)
E-Books for a Better World?
May 2, 2007
During an address on "consumer trends" at the Booksellers Association's annual conference (which ended yesterday in Harrogate, UK), Dr. Michelle Harrison called crowded bookshelves "unethical" and argued that books should go virtual for the sake of the planet (or, at least, for the sake of consumers who are all of a sudden concerned about the planet).
While I agree wholeheartedly that there are too many books out there, Harrison's plan strikes me as wrong-headed for a number of reasons.
Number one: Profits. Remember the recording industry? You know, the one that's been hemmorhaging money since the digitilization of music? Once the majority of books go virtual, the majority of books will be free for anyone who's looking for them. File sharing is as alive and well as it's ever been--as is the insatiable consumer appetite for free stuff.
Number two: Volume. Yes, there's a lot of trees that get chopped down in the name of the publishing industry, but there's a lot of non-book print out there--magazines, newspapers, etc.--not to mention office and restaurant supply, the housing industry and agricultural clear-cutting. In the face of all that, what kind of impact could we expect from any kind of drop in the number of physical books?
Number three: My new Gameboy. I don't know if it's the color, the motion, or the way little Mario says It's-a me, Mario!, but this handheld gaming device is more absorbing and addictive than any virtual book could hope to be. Yes, they're different experiences, and that's the point--the answer isn't to make books more like video games, it's to keep the experiences carefully demarcated, to emphasize the unique pleasures of the page. Kids don't want to read anything on a screen unless it's short--note that text messages top out at 160 characters. When I want to read, I reach for print. When I want to make little cartoon characters jump off cliffs and shoot fireballs at each other, I reach for a screen. And among the 20-something-and-under demo, I think I've got a lot of company.
But then, I'm probably one of the few (at least within that demo) that doesn't think this "Green" trend has legs. I know Americans are real hot to save the planet right now, but there's 6.5 billion people on the Earth. All the digital books and shade-grown coffee and fuel-cell cars in the world aren't going to undo the damage that 6.5 billion people do daily. Hate to be a party pooper, but I don't think there's a whole lot the publishing industry can do but hope someone finds us another rock to populate.
Don't believe me, Dr. Michelle Harrison? Just ask Dr. Stephen Hawking. Oh and check out for his forthcoming book, Could Somebody Please Get Me the Hell Out of Here? Once that hits, he's going to be bigger than Al Gore.
Posted by Marc Schultz on May 2, 2007 | Comments (1)
