Are you ready for the future index of digital publishing?

We are in the middle of the digital book revolution where the single most phenomenon is the growth of portable technology. New devices such as an array of smartphones, iPhones, Kindles, netbooks, laptops, etc. allow users to read anything, anywhere, at any time.

The Past..

The traditional print publishing industry gave no consideration to accessibility. For instance, no feature could be added to a pint book that would make it accessible to a blind person. The printed book was frozen in time and space as it defied repurposing and reuse. A completely new version was required to be used by print-disabled people. Publishers began using computers in the 1990s to create digital files which were turned into hardcopy books.

The Present..

The first generation of digital books consisted of electronic versions of trade books. Trade books consist of text and have basic structure which requires little formatting. Hence, they can be easily adapted into digital books.

Anyone who has made a living in the publishing world knows that it would be foolish to discredit the relevance that print has played in fostering strong relationship between your brand and readers. However, the issue arises when the published do not update their publishing strategy considering the growing mobile market. While many publishers have already digitized their content for online channels, they are yet to consider the importance of updating their strategy for mobile devices. For instance, rendering a print replica page for small screen smartphones will be ineffective. Therefore, in this scenario, it is important for publishers to update their digital strategy for publishing and incorporate a mobile-first strategy.

The Future..

With its growing usage and popularity, mobile is the future of digital publishing industry. This is the undeniable reality that consumers and readers are now shifting to mobile devices as their primary means seeking information. With advances in technology, improved memory capacity on smart devices and affordability, mobile is the main forward-looking aim for the publishing industry.

More and more people now rely on mobile technology because of its affordability, coverage, better access to free WiFi networks, etc.  As per a recent research report –

  • 87% of millennial smartphone owners stated that they do not stay without their mobile phones.
  • 75% content on social channels is viewed on mobile devices.
  • Total internet time has been increased by 75% from 2010.
  • 62% of the digital media time is spent on mobile devices.

*The stats are based on the US demographics.

Mobile Publishing Solutions

Whether it’s converting a PDF to mobile, publishing a magazine online or even using mobile publishing platform, now, digital publishing is the way to appeal to the new readers. While doing this, you are also likely to find new marketing opportunities. With this growing change, publishers must benefit from such developments in mobile to better their digital products to create new revenue streams.

Mobile publishing platforms allow for effective publishing, be it magazines, books, brochures, reports, etc. on any mobile device to deliver media rich content. Such platforms allow users to convert content to mobile friendly format and also push content on various publishing sites. For instance, digital replicas and print ready PDFs will be readily accessible on mobile platforms.

Let’s have a look at the future of digital publishing:

  • There will be a rise of each book through a single app
  • Closure of bookstore and print publishing
  • Rise of interactive books
  • Ebook with retailing models with pay per read subscription will become the norm.

What this all means is that despite the complexity we are facing today, the processes used in publishing are getting easier with the help of technology. We are slowly moving away from specifications and proprietary standards that create barriers. We are essentially moving towards standards that enable us to adopt new technology that makes digital content more accessible to wider audience. In whatever format needed.

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