BISG is the leading book trade association for research and information. Below you can find out more about our past research initiatives and our future ones as well.
Ebooks and other forms of digital content have now entered the mainstream. In the adult fiction category, for example, ebooks have become the most popular media format, selling more than hardcovers, softcovers, or mass paperbacks. Meanwhile, the way students learn and instructors teach is undergoing a radical shift, and the role of the traditional print "textbook" as the foundational tool for instruction is changing along with the traditional publishing model.
Publishers must understand how new technologies are changing the market and what opportunities will arise as a result of this transition. BISG's consumer, student, and faculty surveys provide trendable, actionable information for companies looking to refine their business strategies in the new digital marketplace.
Consumer Attitudes Toward Ebook Reading.
Will there be a "Netflix of ebooks" or will more focused verticals develop?
Who are the major players in digital content subscription? What are the various business models they employ?
How have subscription services fared across different market segments (professional, scholarly, higher education, trade)?
What are the attitudes of agents, publishers, librarians, and others toward digital book subscription? What factors motivate or dissuade them from participating?
Results of Digital Books and the New Subscription Economy (2014) are available in the form of an Executive Summary or full 100-page PDF report.
Success in book publishing continues to rely extensively on consistent preparation and use of product metadata. As digital products grow and evolve, this is true now more than ever.
The Development, Use, and Modification of Book Product Metadata (2012) illustrates critical metadata handoffs, documents how metadata is altered or discarded, and identifies the points at which changes and revisions occur (and, in some cases, don't occur).
Old practices, processes, and business models are rapidly giving way to the demands of digital publishing. Through 10 original case studies, From Experimentation to Innovation in the Digital Age (2008) describes how leading publishers like Hachette Book Group, Random House, and Harlequin created innovative responses to challenges posed by the digital world.
This pioneering research report provides an analysis of the book industry's environmental impact and assesses possible areas for improvement. It also makes specific recommendations for improving the book industry's carbon footprint.
Packed with nearly 40 charts and graphs, Environmental Trends and Climate Impacts: Findings from the US Book Industry (2008) contains statistics on companies with environmental policies, recycled paper usage, forestry certification preferences and energy usage throughout the industry. In addition, the report provides a unique carbon footprint and forest growth model for the US book industry, along with interesting case studies of companies making strides toward green business models.
Would you like to sponsor any of our upcoming International Market Reports? India and China are both coming soon. If so, please contact Aurora Ferrer.
BookStats, a Joint Venture between the Book Industry Study Group (BISG) and the Association of American Publishers (AAP), provided the most comprehensive available view of the size and shape of the US book publishing industry, measured by publisher net unit and dollar sales.
A new way to communicate with book buyers, other consumers, and the general public is spreading rapidly in North America. Consumers in the U.S. are joining their counterparts in Japan, other parts of Asia, and Europe in using mobile phones and other mobile devices to obtain information and even make purchases.
The practice is widely referred to as "mobile commerce," but this term is somewhat of a misnomer. While the purpose of many applications is an immediate commercial transaction, other applications focus on advertising or product descriptions that may or may not lead to future sales. Still other applications are purely informational and are not commercial in any respect. Nevertheless, no other term has a comparable span of acceptance, and BISG will use "mobile commerce" in its presentations.
Mobile commerce uses bar codes placed on posters, in print media, and on products as the starting point for communication with consumers. These bar codes are most frequently two-dimensional (2D), consisting of a matrix of tiny black and white squares rather than the more familiar one-dimensional (1D) bar codes consisting of bars and spaces. The QR Code®, a registered trademark of Denso Wave Incorporated, is one of the most widely used of these newer symbologies. A consumer can capture an image of the bar code with a mobile device that has an integrated camera and activate an application on the device. A URL stored in the bar code directs the application to a website that displays information or permits a wide variety of actions, including purchases. Companies in general retail are increasingly active with mobile commerce advertising and promotional campaigns, and new examples appear daily. Publishers and booksellers are also exploring uses. BISG is not promoting or advocating mobile commerce or any specific approach to implementing it. However, BISG is actively assembling information to help participants in the book industry consider this technology. The information will be updated and expanded as developments warrant.