It feels a little weird to write this blog. After all, I run a web company and I’m writing a blog- not an article for a newspaper. But I’ve been thinking about this a lot recently so I wanted to put my thoughts together as a post.
“The Death Of Print” has been predicted for the last 10 years or so. Magazines are going out of business, Newspapers are doing the same or significantly downsizing. Anyone looking at the industry has to admit the future ain’t too bright. But does that mean that print is going away? I want to make the argument that print is going to be around for a good while longer and remain one of the most popular mediums for the foreseeable future.
Why is print still a valid medium? Two words- user experience.
I consider myself to be pretty tech savvy. I have computers, an iPhone, TVs etc. But I don’t like to read online. I do it but I prefer reading print. Online reading is often not a consuming experience since the medium is by nature distractable. I start reading something and then I’m jumping around, researching something on Wikipedia, etc. I rarely finish a blog or article when reading online. But give me Sunday’s New York Times and I will end up reading 10-15 articles start to finish over the course of several days. I love the focus of print. It’s keeping my hands busy without being too heavy (hello Kindle!).
Speaking of Kindle- I don’t get it, same with iPad but at least the iPad looks better. Why are people paying hundreds of dollars so they can then pay $5-15 a book and then have to read it on that ugly thing. I have to say I was a little shocked that it wasn’t a bomb.
There are plenty of people like me, including many avowed techies. Sure I scan blogs, Twitter, CNN on a daily basis but I almost never read Fast Company, Inc. or even the Indy Star or Nuvo Newsweekly online. The Web is for scanning/consuming (like a plate of food you pick at) and print is for reading/owning.
You might think that I’m just showing my age (38) but consider the recent resurgence of vinyl records. Vinyl was all but dead 10 years ago (sound familiar?). The CD had put all but a handful of record pressing companies out of business. The only records being pressed were for DJs and some vinyl geeks over in Europe. In the early to mid 1990s you could buy used vinyl for pennies. Stores were just clearing it out. But then Napster happened and then iTunes and now the CD is a dead man walking just like vinyl was 10 years ago.
Vinyl Records are the only section of the music industry that is growing. Many of the buyers grew up with CDs and are now turning to vinyl. Why?
Same two words- user experience. A CD is mostly a transportation device- it takes music from the store to your digital devices. Sure there’s some art work there but usually not much and it’s really small compared to a record. CDs are nearly worthless at this point and we are just a few years away (if that) from their demise as the standard medium for releases. I know from talking with friends in the music business that many labels are looking at a vinyl/digital release format in the near future.
So as we embrace our digital future and all the glory that it will be, let’s not forget that we have not actually changed, we are still animals that want to touch, feel, smell and interact with our world. The screen creates a barrier between us and a full tactile experience. I predict as we move towards more content being digital there will be a quiet but growing backlash by consumers craving tactile experiences.
Print isn’t dying, it’s just resting.
I hope you’re right. I love owning books and reading the newspaper.
If publishers can monetize their online presence instead of giving it away for free, I think things will turn around.
Like Josh, I love books and handling a newspaper or magazine from time to time. It’s the experience AND the information I’m after. Same with putting pen to paper.
No doubt my kids are going to be less inclined to feel a need for that experience but in the meantime…I’ll keep buying and subscribing to the old stuff.
Playing devil’s advocate, ’cause I love receiving my issues of Bass Player and Tape Op magazines:
Regarding the Kindle – people said the same thing about the iPod’s listening experience that you’re saying about the Kindle. The listening is an inferior experience, why buy tracks from iTunes, etc. It caught on from a combination of fashion and convenience, much like Oprah’s endorsement of the Kindle and the ability to carry several books at one time. The key differentiator is that there’s less chance (in my mind, at least) of needing to read a book at a very specific moment in time, unlike listening to a 4-minute song. Also, listening can be reduced to a passive activity, whereas reading remains an active engagement. The Kindle’s strength lies in reaching persistently mobile customers and folks who require a great deal of knowledge in a compact form factor (like the high school and college students praying for textbooks on Kindle). It’s not about experience, then – it’s about logistics.
The vinyl/digital experience you mentioned does a good job of bridging the two needs of experience and logistics, but I’d also like to see people exploiting the possibilities of new digital experiences, i.e. what we can do to make the Kindle/iPod/portable digital media experience more satisfying and fulfilling than the current models can deliver.
To be fair, though, I’m listening to a podcast of old soul 45s while I’m writing this . . .
I love that we have a choice between print and digital media. I realized the other day that I’m never more than ten feet from my MacBook or iPhone or a traditional book. I also read NUVO and Indianapolis Star in the smudgy paper version, but I love being able to share a link to an article via facebook or Twitter or e-mail.
I was on vacation last week and reading by the pool (just had to throw that in) next to a person reading on a Kindle. I think we both gave each other smug ‘poor bastard’ looks.
I bought myself a record player for Christmas. It’s making me more conscious of my music choices as apposed to just hitting play.