By Edward Nawotka
In today’s headline story Hannah Johnson reports back from this year’s Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain where a variety of new devices and display technologies were introduced. For publishers in the United States, the focus for the future of e-reading has been primarily on the larger format, dedicated e-readers such as the Amazon Kindle and Apple iPad. In much of the rest of the world, where dedicated devices have been slow to come to market, the focus is on the mobile phone.
The question is: Are phones, in the long run, more important than e-readers to the future of global book publishing? I would argue yes, especially when one considers price. In highly populated growth markets, such as China, India, Indonesia, Brazil, and much of Africa, a dedicated e-reader will remain a very pricey luxury for the foreseeable future; in the meantime, the cheap cell phone and the low-cost, high-speed internet access that comes with it will become nearly universal. If a publisher want to reach readers — especially a new generation of readers — they will have to start there. The cell phone will be the gateway device, something many may very well own long before they even have a modest collection of “books,” whether real or digital.
Ultimately, this economically-motivated preference for the smaller screen of the phone may influence the very nature of books that are available. Will the Japanese-style cell phone “novel” become the universal wave of the future?
Tell us your thoughts in the comments below or via Twitter using hashtag #ppdiscuss.
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The Future in the Palm of Your Hand (Publishing at Mobile World Congress 2010)
6 months ago
[...] DISCUSS: Are phones more important than e-readers to the future of publishing? [...]
Matt
6 months ago
I believe Cell Phone Novels are the wave of the future and will have a huge impact, they have already arrived in the English speaking world as well. I am one of a handful of writers to attempt to write one in English in the same style that the Japanese themselves write it in. My Cell Phone Novel “Once Upon A Christmas Wish…” is currently the second most popular English Cell Phone Novel, having been viewed over 14,300 times since it went online Dec. 24. You can check it out here: http://textnovel.com/stories_list_detail.php?story_id=2395
Chris
6 months ago
Yeah, as an owner of a Sony E Reader and Kindle II, I’d have to agree with your assessment, Ed. They’re each big, expensive, fragile and not particularly fun to read on. And as Alton Brown would say, they’re also “uni-taskers,” so probably destined for obsolescence. Yes, mobile phones will be the wave of ebook future. But reading a lot of text even on an iphone remains a pretty sucky experience. A mass market paperback is portable and convenient enough for me.
Tell
6 months ago
I cannot imagine reader without wifi and 3g connection. So this is all in one as smartphone
Mike
6 months ago
I agree with Tell. The phones will get a little bigger and a little more high-res. The books will get simpler, with complicated non-fiction able to link out to web site from the phone. Novels will work, however clumsy they turn out to be on the phone screen. Batteries will be key here. A long train, bus, or plane ride has to have great battery life of extra portable batteries, especially if backlit.
Mike
6 months ago
I forgot to add: see the NYTimes Magazine for last Sunday (2/14/10) re: religion in history textbooks. ebooks will finally be able to have customized editions for each state. Texas religious conservatives will no longer rule the textbook world. about time.
Matt
6 months ago
I believe that cell phone novels are definitely the future of literature in the soon coming digital age of ebooks. As a writer of one, I have seen a large interest in the format not just in Japan, but also in the Western world.
Jason
6 months ago
Agree wholeheartedly, Edward. I independently wrote a similar post this very day, comparing my Kindle App usage (heavy) to my use of the device itself (almost none). Also did the pros and cons of each and came to the conclusion that Amazon is on the wrong track with hardware. More at http://www.bookbee.net