Panel debate with contributions from the floor. Are e-readers the death of the book? Panel: Duncan Wright, Adam Lancaster, Bev Humphrey; Chair: Ann Cowdrey, SLANI

1. SLA conference
Belfast
Are e-books the death of the
physical book?

2. SLA conference
Belfast
aln@monkswalk.herts.sch.uk
@dusty_jacket
Are e-books the death of the
physical book?

3. http://ebookfriendly.com/funny-commercial-tablets-
will-never-replace-paper-video/

4. Paper books
 Publisher pulp 77million books a year
 40% of books printed are pulped
 In US 30million trees cut down for books
 1.6million metric tons of paper used for books in
US
 4billion worldwide for paper
 Most cut down from unfarmed sources
 70% comes from unfarmed
 In Canada, UK’s biggest source of pulp 90%
comes from ancient forests

5. Sales in the UK
 In 2012 digital sales soared +188%
 All book sales increase up 6.1%
 E-book non fiction rise of 128%

6. NLT research
 39% young people read daily using electronic
devices
 28% printed materials daily
 E-book reading doubled to 12%
 52% rather read on screen
 32% read in print
 4 out of 10 own a tablet or smartphone
 Boys more likely to read on screen

7. Jonathan Douglas (NLT)
We are very concerned by our findings that children
who only
read on-screen are significantly less likely to enjoy
reading and
less likely to be strong readers. Good reading skills
and reading
for pleasure are closely linked to children’s success
at school
and beyond. We need to encourage children to
become avid
readers, whatever format they choose.

8. Sales revisited
 Paper book sales decline 0.04%

9. Misinterpretation of data
 Ebook sales risen
 Physical book sales remain same
 So those people who’ve always read paper still
do
 Types of ebooks that have heralded
unprecedented rise such as Fifty Shades
 Ebooks giving platform to read what/when/how

10. Misinterpretation of data cont…
NLT says
 Young people reading electronically = weaker
readers
 Young people reading electronically = not for
pleasure
 Isn’t this obvious though
 New readers are being formed by electronic
devices who may not realise they are actually
reader. Of course they are weaker they never use
to read!

11. A library
 a. A place in which literary and artistic materials,
such as books, periodicals, newspapers,
pamphlets, prints, records, and tapes, are kept for
reading, reference, or lending.
 b. A collection of such materials, especially when
systematically arranged.
 c. A room in a private home for such a collection.
 d. An institution or foundation maintaining such a
collection.

12. Our role, especially in schools
 Provide material for all types of learners
 Do all we can in every way we can to encourage
reading
 To promote reading for pleasure i.e. to show
young people they can read what they want in
whatever way they want
 We should not be prescriptive as to how this
happens or what this looks like that is not our role

13. Talking books, board books, hardback books, paper
back books,
magazines, newspapers, computers, e-books,
tablets, braille,
large print books, signs, leaflets, manga, graphic
novels,
comics, fiction, non fiction,
The more ways there are to read surely means the
more readers
there can potentially be…