From: Colin Steele <[log in to unmask]>
Date: Tue, 13 Jun 2017 23:48:53 +0000

Academic book reports are coming thick and fast on the future of the
press/scholarly monograph- in addition to the JSTOR one earlier this week.
This one is 105 pages and report below from the UK bookseller best Colin

*******

'Group action needed to safeguard the academic book', warns report
Published June 12, 2017 by Benedicte Page

Publishers and academics must work together to solve the problems that have
led to rising book numbers, but falling sales per title, before the
viability of academic book publishing is called into question, the Academic
Book of the Future policy report has warned.

The report,<https://academicbookfuture.org/end-of-project-reports-2/>
published today (13th June), has called for greater dialogue and
collaboration between stakeholders, recommending that a formal structure
should be established to develop a new vision for the sector.

BookScan figures show the total sales of printed academic books measured
through its channels falling 13% between 2005 and 2014, and average sales
per title dropping from 100 to 60, even while the number of individual
titles published rose by 45%.

In a digital environment with an increasing expectation that content "wants
to be free", there is a growing risk that publishers are relying on a
relatively small number of print purchasers to subsidise a larger number of
e-book readers, and it is questionable whether this is sustainable, the
report found.

The problem was summarised thus: "The incentives for authors to produce
traditional kinds of books are strong, arising from perceptions of the
weight given to such books in assessments of the qualities of individual
scholars and departments.... There are incentives also for publishers to
maintain their output of titles, as they seek to sustain their reputations
by building strong lists in relevant subject areas; and to spread risks and
overheads. The result is that, in many of the major disciplines and
sub-disciplines in the arts and humanities, more titles are published than
even the most assiduous scholar could hope to read.

"And with library budgets for book purchasing at best static in real terms,
and retail sales declining, the business case for the publication of
individual titles is often now based on print sales per title of 200 or
fewer. Further falls will call into question the case for publishing
individual titles, and indeed the value and viability of the whole book
publishing enterprise. Nevertheless the perceived incentives for academics
to publish monographs are so strong that only concerted action by all
stakeholders, and at senior level, can begin to address the problems they
are now generating."

The report predicted: "High-quality content is at the heart of what
publishers provide for authors and readers. But the challenges they already
face - to sustain their reputation for the scholarly quality and
presentation of the titles they publish; to develop new tools, service
offers, and models; to ensure their titles are effectively marketed and
distributed; and to ensure they generate the revenues to develop and
sustain their services for the future - will become more difficult over the
next decade."

The two-year Academic Book of the Future initiative has been funded by the
Arts and Humanities Research Council in collaboration with the British
Library, and led by Dr Samantha Rayner of University College London.

Rayner commented: "One of our key aims in this project was to engage as
broad a community as possible. What the project has above all proved is
that those communities which connect through the academic book are willing
to work together to continue to bring research to readers as
quality-controlled, accessible content. The value of the academic book, in
all its many forms, is still very much a key currency in arts and
humanities research."

The Policy Report is authored by Dr Michael Jubb.
Colin Steele
Emeritus Fellow
ANU College of Arts and Social Sciences
The Australian National University
Room 3.31, Beryl Rawson Building #13
Acton, ACT, 2601
Australia

P: + 61 2 6125 8983
E: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>