Book Publishing Industry - Assignment Example

Book Publishing Industry al Affiliation) Consider the Harvard Business School article “Book Publishing in and the value chain for book publishers, which we discussed in our first face-to-face session. Based on the lessons learned in this course, and considering the structure and competition of the U.S. book publishing industry described in the article, predict to what extent the roles of Agent, Publisher, Printer, and Distributor will be disintermediated or cybermediated. It is with no doubt that the traditional publishing industry is shrinking, an aspect catalyzed by the new web-based platforms, which allow both the authors of books and the retailers to access cheaper services and products. The changes in the needs of the consumers in this day and century where technological advancements allow people to access the internet anywhere from portable devices have led to an outstanding performance by the e-book market. As such, there it is important to note that with such developments, the distance between the authors and the consumers is bound to be shortened. The e-books provide a better deal from the authors in almost all possible ways than they can ever get from the traditional publishers. Bradley and Bartlett (2012) identify one of the greatest differences between the print publishing and the online publishing as the time it takes to publish the materials and make them available for the consumers. In this case, the online platforms provide authors with an opportunity to have their works accessible within the shortest possible time, as opposed to the print publishers (Bradley & Bartlett, 2012). This raises questions over the life expectancy of the ‘print’ publishers with the ever growing online market for books. In due time, the “traditional” publishers are likely to be either cybermediated or disintermediated, according to how they will choose to embrace the changes in consumer and author needs. Their role is especially threatened with the availability of self-publishing options for the authors, an aspect that puts them out of the picture, with an added value of cheaper services for the authors (Bradley & Bartlett, 2012). Nevertheless, those publishers who will be willing to embrace the online trend and establish online services for the publishing of works, they are likely to survive. Such a trend is already evident with various publishers embracing online platforms through which they provide online versions of their publications to meet the online demand. The agents’ position and role is also threatened with the changes towards increased online services as the author has a choice of being in direct contact with the online platforms (Bradley & Bartlett, 2012). For them, they are likely to be reintermediated, this time advocating the traditional publishing as it is only through this type of publishing that they role holds significance. An increase in the online demand for reading material has a definitive impact on the print media. This means that with the increase in information technology, the printers are bound to be disintermediated from the book publishing industry as their role will be consumed by online publishing and accessibility of the books. On the other hand, the distributors are likely to be cybermediated through the development of online distribution platforms in the form of e-Libraries that would enhance the accessibility of eBooks (Bradley & Bartlett, 2012). In this case, the price aspect will play as a major factor even as they look forward to competition from online retailers such as Amazon and the iPad, who have already dug their roots deep into the market. Based on your analysis above, what will be the prevailing new value chain in the long run, once the digital transformation of book publishing runs its full course? With the increase in e-Commerce, it is evident that the agents will have to embrace a new role as advocates of traditional publishers and at the same time as advocates of the authors on the online platforms. However, they may still hold a sketchy position in terms of their influence on the industry, unlike it used to be. On the other hand, most of the traditional publishers will also be forced to embrace online publishing to meet both the print and digital needs of the authors and consumers. Some of the publishers have also already started a shift towards establishing e-libraries, through which they create access to their published works (Bradley & Bartlett, 2012). The traditional wholesalers and retailers are likely to be disintermediated from the value chain even as the chain’s upstream portion take on their on a digital platform. Given your predicted new value chain, recommend a digital strategy for established firms to succeed in ONE of the four roles (Pick 1 from: Agents, Publishers, Printers, and Distributors). The survival of publishers in the new digital era depends on how much they embrace the digital world. It is definite that authors are switching to the online platforms. Such platforms provide cheaper services, fast publication of their works, and consumer feedback in terms of reviews and comments, which allow the betterment of their content (Bradley & Bartlett, 2012). The traditional publishing does not give such advantages. As such, one of the ways through which the traditional publishers will survive in this era is by establishing their online publishing platforms, which should offer less prices as they do not involve much inventory as compared to print publishing. They should also consider establishing e-libraries through which they will take on the role of the distributors, wholesalers, and retailers and work directly with the consumers. This will enhance obtaining of feedback from the consumers, which would be important not only for the authors, but also for the publishers. Given your predictions above, propose a new business idea for a start-up that will capitalize on the opportunities offered by your predicted new value chain scenario. The new value chain offers a sustainable opportunity for investing in matchmaking. This type of business would involve being a central player and a broker in the interaction between authors, highly rated publishers, editors, designers, proofreaders, e-book-experts, and marketers. The business would offer a platform of services for the publication of eBooks by publishers and authors. The main value proposition would be to assist the authors in producing eBooks of high quality and to offer publishing professionals freelance jobs. The business could also take up the role of the distributor and sell books on its website, while also partnering with key retailers. The revenue of the business would be drawn from both the fees paid for publishing and matchmaking services for both publishing professionals and authors, and commission received on book sales. Reference Bradley, S. P., & Bartlett, N. (2012, January 12). Book Publishing in 2010. Havard Business Review, pp. 1-35. Read More