New York – January 26, 2010 – The inaugural Digital Book World event, kicked off today at the Sheraton Hotel & Towers New York. Feedback from attendees, speakers, and staff is positive and the nearly 600 in attendance are reporting positively on the camaraderie, collaboration, and energy of the event. While publishing professionals from around the world are following the Twitter stream of reporting from the new Digital Book World conference.The event’s keynote presentation “Engaging Readers in the Digital Age” by Shiv Singh (2009 Ad Age Media Maven and Global Social Media Lead for Razorfish) encouraged attendees to, "Become a consumer brand. Every company must now be B2C; authors can now connect directly with readers.” He added, “It's not just about slapping up a Facebook fan page. It takes nurturing, connecting. If you build it they may not come.” (Read more at twitter.com hashtag #dbwshiv).
During the lunch presentation Jack McKeown shared a first look at Verso Ad Network’s 2009 Consumer Book Survey. The Survey says even avid readers who own eReaders are buying both printed books and eBooks - that they are not mutually exclusive. Addressing concerns that printed books could quickly become a thing of the past, 49% of avid readers are "not at all likely" to buy an ebook in the next 6-12 months. (Read more at twitter.com hashtag #DBWVerso).
The topic of piracy and digital rights ownership will be addressed in multiple sessions during the conference. Joshua Talent of eBook Architects commented “Give consumers what they want where they want it and they won't steal it”. While Hachette's Maja Thomas summed up the underlying theme of the event: don’t wait to act. Employ a strategy that takes into consideration all the possible incarnations of a product. She said, “Better if editors and authors look at a book and think about transforming it at the earliest stage.”
Day two of Digital Book World will focus on eBooks and community building through a variety of traditional and digital strategies. Book Industry Study Group will kick off the day with Today’s eBook Consumer: A look at First Round Data from BISG’s Ongoing Survey of Consumer Attitudes Toward eBook Reader. Later in the morning Conference Chair Mike Shatzkin (The Idea Logical) will moderate a panel called eBook Tipping Point: The New Issues it Creates.
Find the event directory and a schedule of events with Twitter hashtags
at www.digitalbookworld.com.
Contact: Stacie Berger, stacie.berger@fwmedia.com, 513.722.6328
Contact: Beth Mauro, beth.mauro@fwmedia.com
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Digital Book World is owned and operated by F+W Media, Inc., a leading multimedia company. For nearly a century F+W has provided information and inspiration for core enthusiast communities, including writing, art, graphic design, outdoors, antiques & collectibles, woodworking, among others. The Company’s charter publications Writer’s Digest magazine and Writer’s Market, continue to be the key resources for aspiring and published writers alike. In addition to more than 500 new book titles a year, the Company maintains a backlist of more than 2,500 titles, publishes nearly 40 magazines, owns and operates dozens of informational and subscription-based Web sites, and operates a growing number of successful consumer and trade shows annually.