Getting Beyond The Book: Samsung talks about the Publishing Industry in the Mobile Era at the Frankfurt Book Fair

The pace of development for mobile devices and the way that it has utterly transformed so many different industries in recent years is undeniable. The publishing industry has arguably felt this more keenly than most: e-readers and tablets have changed distribution models, purchasing patterns and modes of consumption. It’s just one example that illustrates why a mobile has become much more than just a phone: today, it’s the primary platform that connects us to the experiences and moments that shape our day – from the photos we share, to the posts we like, to the games we play, to the books we read.

As a leader in the mobile industry, and with a wealth of experience in how technology changes people’s lives, Samsung has made a partnership with the Frankfurt Book Fair, the world’s largest trade fair for the international publishing industry, and participated in a panel discussion to talk about the current state and the future of the publishing industry in the mobile era.

The Evolution of the Publishing Industry: Going from Analog to Digital through Mobile technology

With the title “Getting Beyond The Book,” a panel discussion was held with four participants:

 – Porter Anderson (Journalist, Porter Anderson Media) as the moderator,

 – Michael Norris (Research and communications consultant),

 – Leslie Hulse (SVP Digital Business Development, HarperCollins), and

 – Rory O’Neill (Marketing Director for European Telecommunication Operations, Samsung Electronics, UK) on behalf of Samsung.

▲Panel Discussion at the Frankfurt Book Fair

Through mobile technology, the publishing industry is going from analog to digital. How can we ensure that the reading experience maintains the same emotional connection and heritage of the book while bringing in new and innovative content that enhances the digital reading experience?

Industry analyst Michael Norris started off by giving some insight into the nature and needs of the mobile reader, and where things have come from to get us to the point we are at today.

Topic 1: State of the Industry

Three major problems facing the publishing industry as it evolves were presented, focusing on the core facts that are challenging the industry both from a publishing and consumer perspectives.

1) The Challenges in Device History

Michael Norris gave a brief overview of the history of digital reading devices and the mistakes and successes that were made with these products. He also presented the reasons they failed, from hardware, software, and retailing perspectives. Reading hardware, the early e-readers were successful gadgets but not really designed for the readers. In terms of the software, interfaces that were poorly designed outshadowed the convenience of e-book retailing systems. In addition, retailers and publishers stumbled with the notion that the consumer had more knowledge than in actuality.

The moderator then asked some questions about the challenges. One of the questions was why different demographics approach digital reading in different ways. He explained that different users are being introduced to digital formats at different times and that youth are actually exposed to print in stronger ways than older readers. In addition, many students and children still rely on printed books.

2) The Information Challenge

According to Michael, publishers faced many challenges when analyzing and addressing the information about e-books, e-readers, and tablets. Assumptions became facts and this drastically affected the e-book slowdown of 2012. These assumptions included the increase in the number of readers due to e-readers, the overestimation of the amount of reader purchases made, and the infrastructure of print books not taken into account in the growth of digital market.

The moderator then asked what types of information could help push the industry forward. Michael said that publishers actually haven’t quite exploited their ability to use the data. This is because the publishers haven’t adopted a method that looks at the market from the least valuable customer upwards instead of the most-valuable yet. 

3) The Tablet Challenge

Michael then discussed the question of whether technology is evolving to accommodate books or if the opposite is true. According to him, technology seemed to integrate with printed books. Once tablets appeared on the market gradually, publishers initially did not see the effect the tablet had on the e-book market but later recognized how effective the tablet was in the digital reading market. Also, due to the slow market growth, publishers were forced to sell content on a new competitive landscape with new options as to how the content is presented. Moreover, although no tablet hardware makers had approached reading and publishing from a truly collaborative perspective, as digital reading was always an afterthought, some tablet manufacturers like Samsung have focused on digital reading, producing the Galaxy Tab S that offers the ultimate reading experience.

Topic 2: How Publishers are Reacting

Leslie Hulse, the Senior Vice President of Harper Collins discussed how Harper Collins and the industry in general is reacting and addressing these challenges. She first explained the current state of the digital evolution and the specific pain points the company was facing. She said that the biggest concern was how hardware makers can effectively deliver content. She was also concerned whether her company and other hardware makers could create a marketplace while also creating a specific desire for the content provided in that marketplace.

To approach these challenges, she believed that her company needed to invest heavily in getting through the clutter of the mobile marketplace and countless applications. In addition, Harper Collins must commit to developing a system that delivers content that is actually seen and stands out. Furthermore, she asserted that by collaborating with Samsung, Harper Collins could solve this challenge and deliver publishing content in effective ways.

Topic 3: Addressing the Solutions

Subsequently, Rory O’Neill, Marketing Director for European Telecommunication Operations of Samsung Electronics addressed Samsung’s overarching goals with the publishing industry and discussed how Samsung has a desire to learn and collaborate with publishers to help them address these challenges.

•Ÿ Samsung is collaborating with the industry to bring content to readers in new and exciting ways

Tablets are an increasingly popular reading format: the industry must ensure that their content captures the attention of users faced with a myriad of multimedia entertainment options. But this also presents the industry with the opportunity to explore new formats and media for content delivery.

Rory O’Neill explained that Samsung’s role is to offer technology and expertise that enables publishers to provide readers with new ways to discover and experience their content. Earlier this year, Samsung partnered with Marvel to bring its digital comic library to Galaxy Tab S users via the exclusive Marvel Unlimited application. In addition, Samsung is extending this partnership further to bring premium Marvel content to our new Gear VR headset, offering readers the opportunity to experience Marvel’s fabled stories in a completely new way.

However, he mentioned it is also important that Samsung wants to learn about the industry experts, to ensure that Samsung can be the best collaboration partner as the sector evolves to meet the changing needs of the digital-first age. Samsung’s innovation partnership with this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair provides Samsung with the optimum platform to do this.

•ŸŸ Samsung has a history of authentic industry collaborations that provide real value to consumers

Samsung has been creating many partnerships across different fields. Rory O’Neill took for example the Jay-Z collaboration: Samsung partnered with the rap star to create a dedicated app for his new album that the customers could download for free ahead of its release. That’s an example of taking advantage of the immediacy of the digital format and delivering a real ‘moment of charm’ to the customers and/or Jay-Z fans.

As he explained, in publishing, Samsung wants to innovate in a similarly meaningful way that adds value to both the industry ecosystem and customers. And Samsung also sees so many mutual benefits that the publishing industry’s embracing of digital technology can bring to each other’s ecosystems.

“In an increasingly commoditized smartphone and tablet market, content is king,” Rory added. Most consumers today are satisfied with the features and functionalities of their smartphone – it’s a given that they will be of a certain level of quality and sophistication, with some variation depending on the price point.

Samsung is shaping the next wave of innovation with products that both meet and anticipate what people want from a mobile device, including smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, and virtual reality headsets. Through differentiated products and services, Samsung can enable many other industries to deliver new experiences to their customers. With regard to publishing, it’s not about merely replicating the traditional reading experience on a digital device – it’s about exploring the possibilities and opportunities of the digital format and delivering immersive new content experiences.

Samsung has been continuously trying to understand how consumers’ desires change and evolve. Now it is one of the leading consumer electronics companies and is pushing the changes in the mobile era, with much-loved products such as Galaxy Smartphones, Tablets, and Gear devices. Through the partnership with the Frankfurt Book Fair, the leading innovator in the mobile era is to participate in finding new ways to blend the reading experience with innovative technology that can transform storytelling.