Borders' Bankruptcy: Where is the future for books?

In one of my earlier blog entries, I talked about how traditional books still have the charm, and will not be easily taken over by e-books offered on devices such as Kindle and iPad. However, on Wednesday February 16th, the America's 2nd largest book sellers, Borders Group, filed Chapter 11 Bankruptcy, which heavily shaked the publishing industry. We can't help but wonder: Did this happen because of the competition from e-books? Did this happen because people are just not reading? Where is the future of book publishing and sales?

Many have argued that Border's failure lies in its lateness in catching up with the digital trend. More consumers have turned to online vendors such as Amazon for Paper books. One of Borders' main competitor - Barnes & Noble also started online retailing early on, and introduced its own e-reader for e-books. On the other hand, Borders has been slow in catching up with the digital technology, focusing on improving shopping experience in its brick and mortar stores. The bankruptcy showed that this approach is questionable in today's economy, and especially in the publishing industry. Amazon is experiencing steady growth over the past a few years, which shows that the problem is not that people are not reading, but rather, how they are reading.

Therefore, it is necessary that we re-evaluate the future the book industry after Borders' bankruptcy. Right now, e-books sales count for 10% of the market share of total book sales. And this incident confirmed that the trend will continue to grow. Readers will turn to digital versions of books, and for those who still love physical copies - online vendors will be their place to go. Simliar problem is also experienced in the news and magazine industry, where digital versions of newspapers and magazines are gaining popularity. An important lesson for businesses is: it is vital to pay close attention to industry trends, and to act according, and QUICKLY. Although I am a fan of physical books, I would expect that in the near future, half of the publications will be sold digitally as e-books, and a large chunk of the remaining sales will be made through online vendors. Hopefully, the impact of Borders' failure on the book industry will allow many publishers and writers to re-think their business, and I will be excited to see what is going to happen next.