As engadget reports, e-readers dominated the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas last week.
Put it all together and we begin to see the story of a 2010 e-reader market that extends way beyond just e-books to include newspapers and magazines augmented with audio and full-color animations, video, and imagery.
All of this innovation gets us close to the iPod moment for print which I have written about before.
In the magazine space, the biggest near-term potential impact these devices could have as I see it is with special interest titles. Imagine, for example, a train magazine collector. They could store in the one device all the articles (or magazines) of interest for readying anywhere anytime. It’s the ability to store and search the titles which makes the devices an interesting medium in this special interest space.
There have been plenty in the newsagency channel who have said that e-readers will not impact newsagencies and that the technology will not replace the print experience. The last week at Las Vegas will cause some of these skeptics to change their minds.
FOOTNOTE: Australian newspapers are reporting the advance of the e-readers in a positive light whereas in the past coverage has usually been negative.
E-readers are not only being created by manufactures in droves, but they’re being adpoted by consumers at an incredibly fast rate.
They’re not huge here in Australia yet, namely because, as always, we have to wait for technology trends to filter through from the US.
The first question that comes to mind is – Should newsagents try to secure a place in this new market? Should we try to become a destination store for the retail of e-readers? I can envisage a few models that might work in the Australian market.
Finally I agree with you Jarryd. i-tablet etc etc will dominate. It won’t replace the page turning effect that some consumers are used too but it will bring a ‘now’ and ‘right now’ effect that people are wanting. Look at how much i-tunes, big pong music, etc, is dominating the music retail enviroment.
We need to look at what Sanity and others have had to do to survive. Sanity is pretty much a DVD store now.
Yes we as newsagents need to grab this space as quickly as possible. But how. Publishers could adopt that applications type sellin and cut out mainstream retail. Do we then sell the units themselves? Again hard to organise and capture. Woolies etc will also be left behind with this and it might see them exit from Mags as a long term stocked item. And I did say might. I would certainly like to be a stockist of these items as if we don’t do something to create top of mind with this product then we are going to get left with the baby.
e-readers are coming like it or not, so are our associations selling us to the publishers so we are at the forefront of any new retail model?
We need to remain relevent in tomorrows retail world and linking our industry to the new form of media is common sense in my opinion.
Sticking our heads in the sand until it is too late will only do us damage. We have the best retail channel to offer customers fast, efficient service so we should be out in the market trying to get a slice of the action, is this not what associations are for?
Large book retailers are getting in early, so we need to keep placing our channel before the publishers so when the time comes we get our share.
Can any of you imagine walking around with an e-reader?
Its not a phone or wallet that you can just put in your pocket, it must be looked after as they are fragile electronic devices.
They will affect sales in newsagencies without a doubt but how many of you have been affected by electronic greeting cards? There are hundreds of sites which offer these.
Nothing beats a $1 paper that can be left on the train or bus.
Laptops are another great invention, the pc that can be taken anywhere but where do most people use their laptops….on their desk….
James,
We need to stop thinking about newspapers. People will buy stories and not the aggregator type product of today.
James, a good e-reader possibly not the current generation, but in the next 5 years will be very portable (roll it up like a magazine), cheap (less than $100) and then current generation are no more fragile than your mobile phone anyway. And what is stopping you from leaving your phone or bag with valuables on the train?
These excuses really don’t hold any weight anymore. You need to embrace technology and work out how you can profit from it because I wouldn’t want to own a newsagent in 15 years time they way things are looking.
James,
I’d suggest you take a look at some of the devices coming out of the CES. E-readers are certainly NOT fragile. Some are bendable! Some of the concepts for future readers include even more durable devices.
I have not read a newspaper in years (unless someone has shown me an article). I read news on by notebook. And similarly to what Mark points out, I don’t read ‘publications’ – I read stories. Google News is the aggregator and initiator of almost all news I read.
I agree that all media will go digital but i dont believe in e-readers.
Like Jarryd said he reads it on his notebook, a device which im sure he uses to do many other tasks. Would you go out and buy an e-reader Jarryd?
Digital media is the future. No doubt about it. I just don’t believe the e-reader is the device to deliver digital content to the end user.
Bob, I can’t see an e-reader that rolls up like a magazine costing under $100 in the next 5 years. The technology will be there but not avalible to the masses at that price.
5 years ago it cost $3000 to buy a decent notebook computer. Today, $500. E-readers will basically end up as commodities, subscribe to The Age and you will get one for free. The technology for roll up ereaders is around, it is just a matter of fine tuning.
http://www.engadget.com/2009/11/12/wistron-readius-like-ereader-with-pull-out-flexible-display-lau/
Imagine if the much hyped and little seen Apple e-reader was flexible paper one like this. I would put my newsagent on the market tomorrow.
The apple e-reader you talk about is the ‘iSlate’. The Apple version of the Tablet PC. A great leap forward in technology. An e-reader….No. Its a full blown Mac computer. It performs all the tasks that an iMac or MacBook would plus more and has a touch screen. This isn’t a simpleton device like the Sony e-readers or the Amazon Kindle which basically have one purpose.
Devices like the iSlate are the technology i spoke of that will deliver this totall digital future. They are the VHS and simpleton e-readers are BetaMax.
The fact is the we will see these devices enter the market with some impact upon the channel. We can be ahead of it or sit back and watch the battle unfold.
The big boys will enter this market at some stage. Smart representatives of our channel could secure us as destination stores now. They could do this by siteing the fact that we are the destination for the broader range of mags etc. Leave it 12 months and we will be nothing more than spectators. James you have a point, who is going to carry around this device. My guess is that it will become the norm with Uni students, inner city ‘DINKS’, kids and young adults with disposable income that have most everything else.
Walk through your local shopping centre, how many kids have moblie phones? how many people do you see using public internet kiosks? We need to get more information and make some collective decisions.
James,
I wouldn’t go out and buy and e-reader as a device to read news. As a book-replacement … definitely.
However, the way in which I consume news is very different to the way in which those who read print media consume it. E-readers, as they exist today, provide a solution for the existing market segment that reads print media. Something such as the Google phone provides a solution for the market segment (to which I belong) that consume news online.
As e-readers evolve I imagine we will see some tablet/e-reader hybrid style devices. These will likely serve as further transitional device, aimed at changing the way in which e-reader consumers (ie. the now former print media consumers) consume news. Of course this is only a guess at the path the technology could take. But the point in the media-timeline where everyone is beginning to transition to an interactive style of media consumption is many years off. In the interim (albeit a potentially large interim) e-e-readers (in their varying forms) will service the old print media market segment.
Even if news via e-readers doesn’t take off long term they still have the appeal as book replacements (a market that looks certain to be sustained long term). Ebook-readers would still fit well in the newsagecy mix.
I think we may be missing the point.
The consumer may not have to buy the “reading device” it may be like Foxtel, Sold or rented to the consumer with a number of optional programs for a monthly fee each with a perpeptuity until the agreement comes up for renewal.
Think about it we are very vunerable. Read Business Speculator today http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/The-Australian-to-be-separate-division-ZM5GB?OpenDocument
and read about the plans for subscription copies and in general the method proposed for future distribution and then apply iot to where the newsagent will be placed in this scenario. All is not what we necessarily want it to be.
Graeme,
Monthly subscription fees and device ‘renting’ won’t happen for a few reasons.
1. The trend for content, whether it be news, music, television, movies or books is towards something called “on demand”. Part of his concept is that users select what they want, when they want it. Subscrptions don’t facilitate this.
2. Renting technology is unpopular in the mainstream maktplace. Id say its almost non-existant.
News content organisations can try and push different modes on the marketplace all they like. Ultimatly consumer demand will win out.
BTW that link to Business Spectator only allows a user to view the site a few times before being forced to register. Even though it’s free I, like most consumers, don’t want to endure the tedious task of signing up.
Jarryd,
I think that Graeme meant rented as in your mobile phone contract.
Graeme,
It may be a little early to push out the ‘we are all doomed’ boat. I make about $10.00 per day from papers. Some are sold alone but most are part of a basket. If they all went away tomorrow, I could manage. If magazines went also … I would rent a smaller shop or massively expand offers in stationery or gifts.
The point is that we should be ahead of this change. Talking about selling Kindles is not the solution, that may be better served by JB Hifi et al, but finding our new market is the key. Maybe the stationery/ Ink and Toner market will become ours along with lotto, gifts, paint, party and cards. The future is exciting, maybe our product has yet to be launched.
Hi Brett,
I agree wholeheartedly I am just pointing out what the big fellas are up to. Our future is up to us I have just spent a month in France. Holidaying and looking at “Branding” for France is inredibly good at “Brand” identification and is a Nation of independent retailers. (No Westfields, how sweet) I looked Tab Presse-Lotto stores. the equivalent to our newsagenices (small ones and large) thorought Paris and the South of France to Cannes- Monaco etc.
Interesting talking with owners re Looto (some have it some don’t) thoughts about future generation purchases, stationery sales and presentation and all of our “common” fields. Took many photos and now need to compile the notes and place the relevant info in some sort of order. Their emphasis on newspapers and magazines is not as high as we project nor is their range as deep. Tobacco plays an important revenue earner as there are many more smokers there than here (bloody cold -5 deg and snowing -they have to warm up some way. None of them have home deliveries and papers are free at the Hotels (accommodation) and most Cafe’s. Bit like we are here.
Shall share some stats when I catch up with the incredible new year workload.
Jarryd,
I am only projecting what Rupert Murdoch has already staed. Who am I to disagree especially when he owns 25% of Foxtel, Stokes owns 25% of Foxtel and Telstra owns 50% of Foxtel and Rupert says he would love to buy 25% more of Foxtel from Telstra ANYTIME they will sell it.
He went on to say much as I have outlined plus more.
If you read the link Hartigan yesterday virtually confirmed the Australian will be a “trial”
I could go into how it will work and speculate on how it can be introduced giving meaning to the “new” contracts and also speculate on the future of print media and its “new” form but I won’t for News Ltd and other publishers are dealing with a “split” generation and technological market place and are keeping all their options open. This also is no forum for speculation- it is too damaging and none of us really know the “Black Swan” affect that is out there with the economy globally to be a Prophet.
Retailing what we have has agreat furure with clear indefication and focused product, service and pricing.
Murdoch is on record as saying “He isn’t in the tree business he is in the media-news business”
He means subscription dedicated sales copies.
A tip not a prediction. Watch the “Wall Street Journal” and see if The Australian doesn’t follow suit.
I’ve discusssed e-readers here for years, the devices and the future model.
Some publishers will try giving readers away with chunky subscriptions. Most will connect with readers oout there and try the paid model.
The real shift will come when the story is set free and consumers can purchase this for a micropayment – like the song has been set free from the album by iTunes and others.
In terms of rental, the devices in the US come with mobile connectivity and for this you partner with a phone company to provide access to content.
While I read what Rupert Murdoch is up to, he is a newcomer to this space. He may get it right or he may not. If we look at the music industry, again, the old players got it wrong for many years and lost market share as a result.
He got Super League wrong because he didn’t understand the culture and he split the loyalty.
Maybe he will get it right this time. We can only deal with the fact that something is happenning without our inclusion.
Time to get on with what we have, improve it and go forward.
Also to fight for our rights in what we have invested in.
Brett,
If Graeme is talking about a concept similar to mobile phone contracts I’m not sure where it fits into the e-reader market. Mobile phone providers subsidise the cost of handsets because they lock them to their network – essentially ensuring that they make money from the services that customer uses.
You can’t tie e-readers to one “service provider” (ie. one news content provider). It would defeat much of the purpose of the device.
Graeme,
Murdoch may mean “subscription dedicated sales” when he talks about being in the media-news business (all reports/interviews would certainly indicate this to be the stance he takes) … but ultimatly it’s not up to Murdoch. In the world of electronic media consumers have far more power than in the old print model. If they don’t take to electronic subscriptions (and the data indicates that they won’t) then Murdoch is going to have a problem if he continues to push that model.
http://www.businessspectator.com.au/bs.nsf/Article/A-paper-thin-wall-for-Murdoch-pd20091215-YR2KJ?OpenDocument&src=srch
To suggest that we can’t be included in the media-shift is short sighted. That’s like saying book stores shouldn’t be included in their industry’s media shift (from paper to e-books). The opportunity may be there for us to be included (in the retail of e-reader hardware) and we should be beating down doors to be part of this new market.
Jarryd,
You can prophesise all you want about which way the electronice media will be handled by the public or not by Murdoch I really don’t care My interest is in what Murdoch does because what he does affects newsagents.
I have never said we can’t be involved in the media shift, you must be reading something else, however it won’t be in the distribution of hardware I can assure you. Read up some more on Murdoch’s activities rather than what you think may happen. News Ltd will not need us to flog their electronic product, they are asking for our subscription address Australia wide right now. They deem those customers as their customers already. We may end up being distributors to “free” newspapers in the future for a fixed price as there may be no cover price.
This is far more likely than selling “kindle” like apparatus to consumers.
As for you can’t do this with that etc it would be a good idea to let us know when News Ltd roll out their model, again I refer yo to the press release by John Hartigan and the appointmentRichard Freudenstein as Chif Executive of the new digital division. He has been appointed to “expand The Australian’s presence online, on mobile phones and on “new platforms”-
Whatever that means.
If you believe that it is not ultimately not up to Murdoch to decide how he will market his product the I guess you better tell him and in a hurry for he thinks he is and so do his shareholders.
Now whether he is right or wrong it is not my concern but as sure as the sun will rise tomorrow it is his decision.
Yes, we should be apart of it and what part is where we should be focusing our attention.
Graeme,
The shift is to electronic/online media – not more print. If we are not involved in the retail of hardware what part of it do you suggest we could be involved in? And why could we not be involved in the retail of e-reader hardware? From where I sit it looks like a logical next step that would fit well into the newsagency mix if done right.
My reference to the decision of ‘how to sell product’ not being up to Murdoch was in relation to the nature of the new media. Of course Murdoch can choose to market his product however he likes. However the nautre of the electronic media market is such that if Murdoch tries to push a subscription model onto consumers there are many alternatives sources available to the customer (in contrast to print where the alternatives are few if any). Murdoch is not able to control the electronic media space like he does print.
What Murdoch does affects newsagents – yes. But what consumers do affects us more.