Industry Analysis & Industry Trends
Book publishing has fared well through the turmoil created by new technologies, such as newspapers, radio, TV and the internet. Nevertheless, book publishers are increasingly competing with other media for readers' time. Publishers are also facing a shift toward digital publications, which is creating opportunities and risks that will have to be managed carefully.
The Global Book Publishing industry is forecast to generate revenue of $94 billion in 2012, up 0.1% on the previous year. Annually, about 4.5 billion books are sold worldwide. The industry's revenue is expected to have decreased by 0.7% per annum over the past five years. However, movements in industry activity vary by region and product... read more
Starting a New Business
Barriers to entry are moderate overall, though they can vary by country and region. Barriers include the reputation and distribution capabilities of incumbents.
It can take time and cost money to build a good reputation among authors, literary agents, book purchasers and readers. A publisher's reputation can be promoted by having a track record of publishing quality books; developed an expertise in particular subject matters; a strong and well-known brand; the ability to market books (such as in attracting media attention, arranging point-of-sale material, establishing book clubs and fairs, and helping authors develop a web presence); and a well-known ability to understand legal issues. The ability to appraise the quality of manuscripts is also important... read more