The printed page is giving way to digital media formats. Yet to call this the beginning of the end for written culture is perhaps a little hasty, says Rüdiger Wischenbart. Here, the first of a series of articles from ifa’s Culture Report, Edition III, on literature in Europe.

Photo: Frankfurt Book Fair

What is the position of the “book” in today’s society? How important is copyright? What role do publishers and business play in current developments? Questions such as these almost inevitably start a pessimistic line of argument in any discussion of trends and progress in book culture.

There is talk of a threat to our culture through digitalisation and the undermining of copyright; of homogenisation and the crushing of diversity through powerfully competitive best-sellers written in English and the monopoly of a few English-speaking companies. For the best part of a decade, the end of an era has been predicted by those who like to call themselves the last remaining witnesses to a disappearing culture of books and reading. However this scenario is largely put forward without supporting empirical evidence.

The fact that our culture of books and reading is undergoing serious changes cannot be ignored. However, changes do not have to mean ‘the end’ or ‘downfall.’ With the help of some examples and empirical evidence, the following will describe the current situation and emerging trends within the book world.

“A book is a non-periodical printed publication of at least 49 pages, exclusive of the cover pages, published in the country and made available to the public,” says the UNESCO Standard Definition of  November 19, 1964. The Meyers lexicon, in 15 volumes, views it similarly: “Many printed, hand-written or blank pages, bound together in a single volume.” These definitions have been used since the 19th century with few changes. The Grimm Brothers’ dictionary states, “Many pages make a book; I have made a book in which I will write all entries; I will write that in a book so it can be remembered.” The Dictionnaire de la Langue Française by Littré in 1869 defines the book as an „Assemblage d’un assez grand nombre de feuilles portant des signes destinés à être lus”, while a century later, the 1969 edition of the popular Petit Rober read: “Reunion de plusieurs cahiers de pages manuscrites ou imprimées.”

What these definitions highlight is not only the self-contained nature of the book but also that it must have both a minimum scale and a public aspect (“made available to the public”). Even authorship is sometimes, if not always, a point to consider.

There is, however, no mention of the cultural significance of the book as a format or of the diverse instruments used in many European countries to protect it – whether purely legal, such as copyright, or other forms such as fixed retail prices. This is all the more remarkable when we consider that the authors of these definitions – whether from UNESCO or the dictionary editors – were aware of the arguments about the qualities of the format of the book. In addition, all these definitions could easily apply to digital books because the fact that until now books have existed on paper does not form an essential part of the definition. On the contrary, they are media-neutral and open to innovation.

Vital vessels of knowledge

For books, still perhaps the most important vessels of knowledge in an increasingly digital world, globalisation in the modern sense began over a decade ago. In the spring of 1998 the German company Bertelsmann announced it was taking over the largest US publisher, Random House. It was the vision of Thomas Middlehoff, a board member long since replaced, to organise a production of the Turandot opera in Beijing with an all-star cast. The music and TV production was to be marketed globally via the company’s own media channels. A magnificent accompanying publication was to be sold in multiple languages while the company’s glossy magazine featured a special report. All this was to be co-ordinated from Gütersloh in Westphalia. Yet the plan failed. And the publishing sector in Germany, and to a certain extent in France, is still propped up almost entirely by mid-sized companies.

Even if we dare take a global perspective, it immediately becomes clear that the worldwide book industry is dominated by Europe. Competition in the USA comes from Bertelsmann, which has been buried deep inside the Random House group for ten years, and the Hachette group belonging to French company Lagardère. Both are family owned and run. The same goes for Mondadori, Bonnier and recently Planeta, currently preparing to take over the second biggest player in France, Editisx, to form a new European group and already openly targeting the international Spanish-speaking market.

Small things become big sellers

One year before the Bertelsmann strike from across the Atlantic, an unlikely novel was mounting a significant global take-over, The God of Small Things by an author from Kerala in South India, Arundathi Roy. Within a year, the gripping village story had made it onto best-seller lists everywhere from Germany to Argentina. Behind this worldwide and, above all, rapid success story which created completely new dimensions in global literature, were most importantly a London agency and the well-oiled wheels of international rights with shares on the London and Frankfurt stock markets.

For the year 2008, we have evaluated  nine major international markets on the basis of top-ten best-seller lists (USA, Great Britain, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands and China) and we have found that only five authors made it to the top in four or more countries (Khaled Hosseneini, Stieg Larssen, Ken Follett and John Grisham).

In the 12 months from April 2008 to March 2009 we used the same system to compare 40 of the most successful novelists and discovered that only 13 write in English, among them Afghan-born Khaled Hosseini and Ireland’s Ceceila Ahern as well as the Indian Man Booker prize winner Aravind Adiga. The 27 other authors write exclusively in the main European languages as well as Brazilian Portuguese (Paulo Coelho). Languages from outside Europe, central or eastern Europe did not feature as original languages in the novels.

Taking a closer look at the publishing corporations showcasing these international success stories, we can draw two conclusions: these global corporations may boast heavyweights such as Ken Follett among their authors, whose international translation rights are passed properly and systematically through international branches with increasingly synchronised worldwide release dates. However, publishers independent of large corporations have the upper hand when it comes to many leading authors. This has been true recently for Khaled Hosseini, who generated high revenues for British Harry Potter publishers Bloomsbury, and for Stieg Larsson, published in the south of France by Actes Sud. A further example of the importance of independent publishers can be seen through the European surprise success story of 2008, Muriel Barbery’s scurrilous novel, L’élégance du hérisson published by Gallimard.

A long case history

The power of publishing corporations is a complex issue. Of course, the last decade has seen enormous upheavals, as staff at independent publishers Hanser or Suhrkamp in Germany, Gallimard or Actes Sud in France, or their colleagues in the smaller markets of Denmark, Slovenia, Sweden, or Austria can confirm from personal experience.

The risks that small to mid-sized publishers must take when it comes to deciding which titles to publish have risen enormously due to major, complex changes in the market.

Time and again, a few genuine top titles – and their authors – are the deciding factor when it comes to success or failure, good times or bad, according to their reception by readers and the media. Bearing this in mind, the solid middle ground appears to be in danger. Average sales figures, which not long ago could reach 10,000 or 15,000 copies for a strong first novel, have generally decreased drastically to 3,000 or 5,000 – against the background of a constantly increasing number of new publications and unsold returns, books sent back by the retailer after a few months because they have not sold quickly enough. The large publishers, who produce far greater numbers, have a stronger position in an increasingly concentrated market, often due to a greater ability to offer discounts and gain prominent display areas in shops.

However, the major players are actually far smaller than their reputations. For a better perspective, it makes sense to take a detailed look at the 12 largest publishing groups in Germany. They generate combined revenues of around 3.1 billion euros (2008).

Exactly what percentage of the entire German market (around 9.5 billion euros) this accounts for can only be roughly estimated since we must also take into account the discounts which the publishers allow dealers, usually around the 50 percent mark. However, when it comes to science, education and textbooks there are completely different, variable distribution ratios which account for around half the revenues of the 12 largest publishing companies.

Big publishers, dissected

Only five of the top 12 publishers operate primarily in the general book market (novels, non-fiction, children’s literature, travel books, etc.): Random House, companies belonging to Holtzbrink Gruppe, Weltbild, MairDumont and Bonnier Gruppe subsidiaries. These companies generate a billion euros revenue each year, in the sectors mentioned above, in the German-speaking region. Nevertheless, they are not a homogenous machine squeezing the diversity out of the publishing industry.

The diversity of books is best illustrated through the image of the library with its vast number of volumes. Each book appears to be complete in itself yet still connected to the others – not only through a systematic order of catalogued objects, but less obviously, via an invisible and intricate network of knowledge tied together by readers themselves. This picture of the library will forever symbolise the homogenous, highly specialised sphere of books – and it is beginning to dissolve in front of our eyes. It is easy to put into words, as the initiators of the Heidelberg Appeal once did when they said, “our culture is in danger”.  

The digitalisation not only of a text but, more significantly, the entire creation, distribution and criticism process is certainly an extremely powerful tool for change. Yet whether this will make it difficult for authors in the future to produce their next novel, essay or poetry collection is doubtful. What is certain, however, is that the printed book has ceased to be the only method of distributing complex knowledge. Under the influence of key international publishers over the last five years, three segments have become distinct: specialist non-fiction (including large parts of scientific journals), education (comprising not only teaching materials but primarily standardised texts), and the normal book trade – the items typically associated with publishing. In just a few years, deep and far-reaching changes to the publishing industry have been caused by a number of factors: restructuring, relocation and outsourcing of large divisions, particularly in the area of education, as well as the often unsuccessful introduction of private equity funds in the generally lucrative area of specialist publications. Moreover, in two of the areas – specialist publications and education – the integrated digital value chain has become the norm, and not only in niche markets. Companies such as Thompson advertise with investors so that more than 80 per cent of their revenues and profits come from digital products. With the change from book to digital products comes an equally fundamental change to the business model, namely, introducing a subscription-style system – replacing the sale of single titles or series – guaranteeing a far more consistent and reliable source of income.

This development is only gradually reaching the much more conservative and starkly fragmented normal book trade. Publishers have found many ways to brace themselves against the rapid changes taking place. Nevertheless, pressure is intensifying. On the one hand readers’ habits are changing. Across all areas of life, screens – from computers to mobile phones – are interfaces for exchanging information, entertainment and culture. On the other hand, cost pressures are increasing and the current economic crisis is becoming, as so many crises of the past, a powerful generator of change and upheaval.

However, a restriction in the range of publications available is not a necessary consequence of these developments. Rather it is changes in the traditional book trade which are causing significant shifts. Two basic trends are developing conversely: on the one hand, the gap is opening between the increasing number of new publications and the decreasing number of average sales each year. On the other hand, distribution channels, and discount developments for titles and publishing houses with limited power in the market – the main drivers of diversity – are creating consistently better conditions for market penetration.

Literary translations from less widely spoken languages, essays on culture and the arts, and documentation, local education and children’s books, artistic works outside the mainstream are all increasingly being published. Even professional publishing houses are venturing beyond the boundaries of a market-oriented cultural production. Many highly reputable publishers freely admit that they only include translations from less established, best-selling literature in their programmes if at least the translation costs are covered.

Writing for “free”

With few exceptions, authors in the area of the humanities  write and publish without charging a fee. In many areas authors are even expected to create material for the production and distribution of their work. Authors make a profit mostly ‘on the side,’ by gaining a reputation, by raising their profiles and through self marketing. In these areas, book culture has become similar to music production, where for many musicians publishing a song is a means of gaining promotion rather gaining income.

However, what has changed little is the fact that books are being written and published – featuring a variety of content and, thanks to digitalisation, in a wide variety of media. The book as “the most universal and useful format for the exchange of ideas and complex knowledge” is likely to be effective and indispensable in the future. In the meantime, what’s clearly taking place is a further fragmentation of the formerly homogenous library. After the fragmentation of traditional books from digital formats, there has been a further split, of best-sellers from less profitable works.

The development of this diversity – in terms of content and media – is perhaps the most important key to making books useful in the future under such complex and unclear circumstances. Therefore, the public outcry over Google’s cataloguing monopoly and the legal protection of access and availability to the range of content is an issue we must address. However, to portray Google as an ogre gobbling up the freedom of books and culture is nonsensical, providing there is an alternative model in the digital and fragmented book industry in which to organise access and perspective, order and circulation. This scaremongering serves only to create an unfounded fear, restricting opportunities for authors and their publishers.

At the same time it is becoming increasingly clear that existing and universal regulations, which cover authorship alone, are not enough. It is not the weakening of copyright, not piracy, monopolies or a predatory free-for-all mentality which are the drivers of current developments. Rather, it is a complex mix of production and distribution methods, changing cultural habits and an imbalance between extremely commercially successful authors and works which lead to success through various other means. From the single homogenous library, another more open and complex space has opened in which the old homogenous building is still important, but no longer the only point of orientation. The diversity of books is reflected in the diversity of readers and their different ways of using books. If we look back at the basic definitions of the book, freeing it from the weight of aggrandisement, its tried and trusted usefulness comes to the fore, and with it the positive shape of things to come.

Rüdiger Wischenbart was born in 1956 in Graz, Austria, and was owner of and advisor to Content and Consulting in Vienna. He produced the annually updated Global Ranking of the Publishing Industry, evaluating international best-sellers for a network of specialist journals. For further information: www.wischenbart.com or www.booklab.info

This article was translated from the German by Kathryn Wells for the Culture Report, Edition III “Europe Reads – Literature in Europe.”