I joined a equipment manufacturing company as a Marketing Manager in 1997 and my job was to provide marketing support for our distributors throughout South East Asia. To keep myself occupied in between flights, I always arm myself with a good read and the Reader's Digest is one of my favourite. I came across this news article the other day and was a little shocked to learn that Reader's Digest filed for Chapter 11 under the United States' Bankruptcy Code, it a bid to re-organise and put in motion a debt restructuring plan with its creditors.
RDA Holding's encountered financial difficulties due to falling subscriptions and newsstand sales of it's largely print based products, including its flagship Reader's Digest. This is the second time the company has filed for bankruptcy protection since company first filed in 2009 and emerged in 2010. But it's comeback has been hampered by lingering debt and declines in Asia and Europe. CEO Robert Guth, believes that this second filing will enable the company to recover, especially since they are gaining momentum in transforming the business and gaining traction in digital media.
Mcmaken (2012) maintains that because ebooks are delivered in digital format, many readers expect ebooks to cost less than their print counterparts, and they often are. Today, prices of ebooks starts from as low as SGD1.25 and some classic books are even available free online. Before Reader's Digest was available in electronic format, I remember paying more than SGD10.00 for a single issue at the bookshop. Today, an electronic format Reader's Digest cost approximately SGD5.00 per issue.
Mobility is another reason why more and more readers are turning away from the purchase of books in traditional print to ebooks. Readers today do not want to carry books in print because they are just too cumbersome. An ebook reader could store the entire contents of a few hundred books, but you could not possible carry that many books in print. These ebooks can be downloaded into electronic devices in the comfort of home, compared to making a trip down to the nearest bookshop without knowing whether the book of choice is available.
Jury (2006, Pg. 52) explore type or font size in print publication for partially sighted readers, or that legibility continues to increase with successive enlargement. With modern electronic devices, the font size can be adjusted with a flick of the screen. Being mere mortals, we cannot defy the laws of aging. As we grow older, our eye sight gets poorer and the need for larger type or font size is inevitable. Electronic devices today allow readers to easily zoom in and out to suit their eye preference.
Jury (2006, Pg. 52) explore type or font size in print publication for partially sighted readers, or that legibility continues to increase with successive enlargement. With modern electronic devices, the font size can be adjusted with a flick of the screen. Being mere mortals, we cannot defy the laws of aging. As we grow older, our eye sight gets poorer and the need for larger type or font size is inevitable. Electronic devices today allow readers to easily zoom in and out to suit their eye preference.
In a survey carried out by sourcebooks (2012), 80% of 200 ebooks reader that participated in the poll, believe that they are reading either somewhat or much more than before. Even big publications like Reader's Digest who has been around for more than 90 years and remains the world's largest circulation magazine acknowledge the need to transform, particularly in the digital arena. It would be such a shame if this publication house goes belly up.
References :
Detroit Free Press 2013, Bankruptcy again for reader's digest, viewed 17 February 2013, <http://www.freep.com/article/20130218/BUSINESS/130218068/Bankruptcy-again-for-Reader-s-Digest>
Image resource : <http://cache.gawker.com/assets/images/7/2009/09/rdcover_01.jpg>
Mcmaken, L 2012, Investopedia, E-Books Vs. Print Books, viewed 17 February 2013, <http://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/0812/e-books-vs.-print-books.aspx#axzz2LubQa821>
Jury, D 2006, What is typography?, Rotovision, SA
Sourcebooks 2012, Are ebooks changing how we read, viewed 17 February 2013 , <http://www.sourcebooks.com/blog/ebook-poll-results.html>
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