Newspapers aren’t the only ones contemplating a digital future. The University of Michigan Press says it will move from paper to pixels:
Michigan officials say that their move reflects a belief that it’s time
to stop trying to make the old economics of scholarly publishing work.
“I have been increasingly convinced that the business model based on
printed monograph was not merely failing but broken,” said Phil
Pochoda, director of the Michigan press. “Why try to fight your way
through this? Why try to remain in territory you know is doomed?
Scholarly presses will be primarily digital in a decade. Why not seize
the opportunity to do it now?”
It’s a recognition of the inefficiencies of paper. Recently it was reported that it costs $10 per copy just to deliver the San Francisco Chronicle Sunday edition to subscribers. And then there’s this story from back in January:
…it costs the [New York] Times about twice as much money to print and deliver the
newspaper over a year as it would cost to send each of its subscribers
a brand new Amazon Kindle instead.
So, it's the end of print. So what? Think of all the landfill that will be saved. Let people subscribe online, or pay a small fee to the Internet company. I don't see, frankly, what people are complaining about. Maybe only the giant papers like the Times will survive. Oh well. Paul
Paul: Are people complaining? I think there’s nostalgia for print. I think many people have a habit of reading print. But there’s no question that as an efficient way to distribute text, electronic distribution is better.