>
>  From Wired News, available online at:
>http://www.wired.com/news/print/0,1294,44277,00.html
>
>E-Books Out of Print Already?
>By M.J. Rose
>
>10:50 a.m. June 4, 2001 PDT
>
>CHICAGO -- Traffic was brisk last weekend at BookExpo America, as more
>than 20,000 people made their way through the aisles, picking up all the
>free books they could carry.
>
>Anywhere from 30,000 to 50,000 units of approximately 250 titles were
>given away, said Michael Cader of Publisher's Lunch. Four-foot piles often
>disappeared in less than an hour and there was a rush at the HarperCollins
>booth when word got out they had free tote bags.
>
>But wasn't this supposed to be the century of the e-book, when tote
>bags would no longer be necessary?
>
>On Friday, Palm Digital VP Mike Segroves showed off a mini disc the
>size of a postage stamp. "This holds 750 e-books and is practically
>weightless," Segroves said.
>
>As if on cue -- a woman weighted down with five shopping bags full of
>books -- shuffled by.
>
>Ironically, some of those bags were touting their new e-book division
>-- PerfectBound -- and the bags read: "Why schlepp? Read e-books" and
>"e-books: instant weight loss."
>
>But while traffic was brisk in the print-book areas, it was a
>different scene in the area referred to by many conference goers as the
>Internet Ghetto. Business on publishing's new frontier was quiet and the
>number of exhibitors was way down, from 120 in 2000 to 80 this year.
>
>Last year, all anybody talked about was e-publishing. This year, the
>subject was as rare as an out-of-print book.
>
>That's not to say there's apathy about the Internet, e-publishing or
>e-books. There are just more questions than answers.
>
>Mark Dressler, director of education for both BEA and ePub Expo, said
>that a lot of last year's players had been fueled only by investment money
>and media hype.
>
>"But the good news is that the folks who are here again this year are
>operating with customers and revenue and sustainable business models," he
>said.
>
>Clearly emerging, Dressler explained, is a fundamental brick-and-click
>strategy. The Web is positioned as a marketing channel on the retail side,
>and there's genuine interest in using Web tools to enhance both digital
>and print products on the publishing side.
>
>But the general feeling at the educational panels -- attended by over
>2,000 industry professionals including booksellers and librarians -- was
>that the fire that will ignite the e-book business has not yet been lit.
>
>Many agreed with Gregory Voynow of iPublish, who said that e-books
>can, and should, become "part of a more informed publishing strategy" that
>will generate additional print sales and serve as a test-marketing medium
>to publish new talent.
>
>Few argued when Michael Ross, executive VP and publisher of World
>Book, said was there were several critical factors keeping the e-book
>business from taking off.
>
>"We need the right reading device at the right price," Ross said. "The
>e-books themselves need to be the right price -­ and need to have some
>value added -­ they can't just be electronic text. And we must make sure
>the experience of downloading works for the consumer. And for the most
>part it isn't."
>
>And while e-books run around $18, the cost of the reading devices
>themselves may be more prohibitive.
>
>For example, Gemstar's REB1100, which weighs 19 ounces and is about
>the size of a paperback book, goes for $300. The 1200, roughly the size of
>a hardback book, weighs 33 ounces and costs $700.
>
>With a rubberized grip, the REB1100 is ergonomically improved over its
>predecessor, the Rocket eBook. The device has a sharp, back-lit,
>black-and-white screen, making reading easy in dim light.
>
>With 8 MB of memory, the REB1100 stores approximately 20 novels, or
>8,000 average pages. A long-life battery allows users to read for 20 to 40
>hours without recharging.
>
>With a larger color display and faster modem, the REB1200 is ideal for
>displaying graphics-rich content. The 1200 can store approximately 3,000
>color-intensive magazine pages or 5,000 typical book pages.
>
>Meanwhile, Seth Godin, best-selling author of Permission Marketing and
>Unleashing the IdeaVirus, warned that complicated encryption methods are
>making e-books more cumbersome, in their own way, than print books.
>
>"If it's too difficult to download," Godin said, "people will just
>keep reading print books."
>
>Related Wired Links:
>
>Author Picks Privacy Over Ranking
>May 22, 2001
>
>Authors: Perish Before iPublish
>May 18, 2001
>
>How to Crack Open an E-Book
>April 27, 2001
>
>Authors, Agents on E-Books' Side
>April 17, 2001
>
>E Ink: Your Hands Will Thank You
>March 1, 2001
>
>E-Books Are Now on the Shelf
>Feb. 27, 2001
>
>E-Books: Just Another Imprint?
>Dec. 12, 2000
>
>E-Titles for the Holidays
>Dec. 11, 2000
>
>Getting a Read on New E-Books
>Dec. 11, 2000
>
>Copyright (C) 1994-2001 Wired Digital Inc. All rights reserved.




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