Introduction

The turning of the century came with the advancement of technology. Old technologies have come and gone; pagers, cassette and VHS tapes have become obsolete, while cell phones, CDs, and Blu-ray discs are all the rage. With e-books gaining more popularity, will it be a case of ‘out with the old and in with the new’ like with CDs and cassette tapes, or will they be able to exist alongside printed books, like in the case of the television and radio?

It is a relatively new technology, having come to existence within the last 40 years, so there are issues such as whether e-books are more eco-friendly than their printed counterparts, and whether their existence is detrimental to publishers and authors alike.

E-books being digital information, they are superficially more eco-friendly, compared to printed books, which need trees to be made into paper, and reliant on fossil fuels for logistics when being distributed. Their effect on the publishing industry is already starting to show.

Impact on the publishing industry

E-books are gaining more popularity, reports the bookstore giant Barnes and Noble.

It is understandable that publishers and authors would be worried about ‘digital decimation’ (we see this happening with the music industry; MP3s and CDs have effectively made records and cassette tapes obsolete) but printed books are still holding their own against their digital counterparts. E-books are cheaper than their offline counterparts, but in the end it doesn’t make a difference.

 "It all depends on the deal. Although an ebook may be cheaper online, obviously an ebook doesn't have to sustain the cost of the print, production and distribution that the print book has to sustain,” says Neill Denny, editor-in-chief of The Bookseller.

At the rate that technology advances these days, people may be afraid to invest in technology that will most likely be obsolete within a few years.

Authors’ incomes from their books also come into play here. With the emergence of e-books, it’s become easier for people to get their works published, but more writers mean more competition, and more competition means that authors have to work harder to market their works and in order to stand out.

But why all the hate for e-books? According to the New York Times, the sales of e-books is actually pushing the publication dates for paperback books forward. Shouldn’t bibliophiles be rejoicing at this? Instead of the average wait time of a year for a cheaper paperback version to be published, having the e-book and paperback version released almost at the same time should be good news, no? E-books surely can co-exist with printed books, just like how snail mail continues to be popular today. 

Common opinion dictates that e-books are better for the environment in the long run.

With all technologies, they come with pros and cons. Yes, printed books aren’t limited by battery life, yes, printed books don’t require a platform or device in order to be read, but e-books themselves don't require chopping down tree plantations to make paper, not to mention the amount of water and other by-products produced when paper is produced for printed books, and the carbon footprint left behind due to shipping the books out to retail stores. In the end, e-books are just digital data. E-books that aren’t downloaded don’t get returned to publishers only to be burned, thrown away, or recycled. In fact, the carbon emitted by an e-book reader is offset by the first year of its use.

However, consumer electronics are known for containing various toxic materials in their material. Sony have declared that their e-book readers are free from such materials (PVC – polyvinyl chloride), though inquires to Amazon about their Kindle e-book readers have gone unanswered.

Of course, if one is so worried about the carbon footprint of printed books, one can always revert to old technology by going to the public library.

The future of e-books

So what exactly is in store for e-books in the future? E-books have only really started gaining popularity within the last few years, at an almost alarming rate, and it seems like a trend that is going to continue. Many things have been said when a new technology is released. For instance, when the television first came out, people warned that the radio industry would fail, and the same was said when home video started becoming popular. VHS players in the home did not stop people attending the movie theatre, and though digital downloads for music are available, there are still people who prefer to buy physical copies on the off-chance that their digital media becomes corrupted or lost.

Conclusion

So will e-books really kill off the printed word? Perhaps it’s still too early to tell. It all comes down to personal preference, really. The arrival of e-mail did not replace snail mail, and perhaps e-books will be just like that – happily co-existing with its physical counterpart, and being another medium all on its own.

References

Bosman, B.J. (July 26, 2011) Paperback Publishers Quicken Their Pace. The New York Times. Retrieved September 28, 2011 from http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/27/books/e-books-accelerate-paperback-publishers-release-dates.html?scp=10

Cenicola, T. (August 31, 2009) Are E-Readers Greener Than Books? The New York Times. Retrieved September 26, 2011 from http://green.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/08/31/are-e-readers-greener-than-books/

Memmott, C. (September 6, 2011) E-books' popularity is rewriting the sales story. USA Today. Retrieved September 6, 2011) from http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/story/2011-09-05/E-books-popularity-is-rewriting-the-sales-story/50267676/1

Morisson, E. (August 22, 2011) Are books dead, and can authors survive? The Guardian. Retrieved September 25, 2011 from http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/aug/22/are-books-dead-ewan-morrison

Shepherd, L. (August 30, 2011) The death of books has been greatly exaggerated. Retrieved September 01, 2011 from http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/aug/30/death-books-exaggerated