CNN reported earlier that newspaper sales are generally down by 2% in the US, while online news viewing has increased by 8%. I definitely contribute to that increase. Living an ex-pat existence for most of the year, I appreciate, more than most, the ability to get news from my favorite dailies over the Internet. While the morning coffee is brewing, my T3 is syncing with AvantGo, and instead of six sections of the New York Times competing at the breakfast table for space with my cereal bowl, spoon in one hand and T3 in the other, I skim through their digital counterparts without the bother of advertising or clutter.
Following the Times, I skim through my collection of ten other news and technology sources, including the international edition of Time Magazine, where I can get a look at the week’s cover photo and a taste of the articles inside. I sate my information hunger with Quick News business and technical feeds, carry the dishes to the sink, and start my work day fully refreshed.
New York Times columnist Frank Rich confirmed, during his interview by Steven Colbert on May 9th, the seriousness of this trend when he said that PDAs spelled doom for the newsprint industry. I downloaded that episode of Comedy Central in Moscow, from iTunes to my PC (while I patiently wait for Apple to buy Palm and take the video iPod to its ultimate incarnation). I think PDAs (including “smart” phones) spell the same doom for book publishers, broadcast TV, music and video discs.
Before I became a voracious eBook reader, I ordered my bestsellers from Amazon, waited an average of three weeks for them to wind their way through the postal maze that stretches between California and Moscow, and paid a premium of 40% for the “pleasure.” Now, they are minutes away via eReader, Mobipocket and Fictionwise, at an average of 30% less than hardcover prices.
Most of you have broad consumer choices, as you are from cities full of shopping malls. For those of us living in the thousands of diasporas scattered around the planet, digital is our only choice. No matter what our native language or culture (or what language or culture we are studying), there are digital newspapers, libraries, music and video collections just a few keystrokes away. The Russians call it “mir tesen”—it’s a small world!
Personally, I don’t think that Sony will be any more successful with their new eBook reader than earlier failed platforms. I do think that the mobile device users of the world will increasingly read and watch on them simply because they can, but that those activities will always remain secondary. Primary will be real-time life management including phone calls, emails and instant messaging. Whatever will be, I’m smiling smugly now because I’m already there!
Jeffrey Barrie, Moscow, Russian Federation