Is the printed word dead (1978)?
Among other things, Peter Drucker analyzed newspaper and magazine operations as a consultant. The following was written by him in 1978!:
It is not true that the printed word is dead. What is dead is the mail carried word. What matters to editor and reader is the message, not the carrier. Putting ink on heavy paper and then carrying that paper over long distances is about a hundred times more expensive and a thousand times slower than sending the same symbols electronically to have them imprinted inklessly on some sort of light-sensitive plastic or paper in the subscriber's home and at his command. To ship three pounds of paper in order to deliver one-tenth of an ounce of ink makes little economic sense and could only be justified as long as there was no other way.
Technically all the elements for electronic graphics exist, including the technology for color images. The electronic magazine is bound to become reality. Even if postal transmission were not extremely labor-intensive, not even counting the hideous cost of door-to-door delivery, electronic transmission would offer enormous economic advantages and equally enormous advantages in flexibility, diversity and editorial individuality.
Paraphrased from Peter F. Drucker's autobiography: "Adventures of a Bystander".
Remarkably prescient, don't you think?
It is not true that the printed word is dead. What is dead is the mail carried word. What matters to editor and reader is the message, not the carrier. Putting ink on heavy paper and then carrying that paper over long distances is about a hundred times more expensive and a thousand times slower than sending the same symbols electronically to have them imprinted inklessly on some sort of light-sensitive plastic or paper in the subscriber's home and at his command. To ship three pounds of paper in order to deliver one-tenth of an ounce of ink makes little economic sense and could only be justified as long as there was no other way.
Technically all the elements for electronic graphics exist, including the technology for color images. The electronic magazine is bound to become reality. Even if postal transmission were not extremely labor-intensive, not even counting the hideous cost of door-to-door delivery, electronic transmission would offer enormous economic advantages and equally enormous advantages in flexibility, diversity and editorial individuality.
Paraphrased from Peter F. Drucker's autobiography: "Adventures of a Bystander".
Remarkably prescient, don't you think?
posted by Victor | 9:35 AM
2 Comments:
What's the answer to that question today?
I work for a small printer. Our company president believes that large print runs will decline. And, because we're small, our business will continue strong for at least another 5 years.
I don't know if he's right. But, I do know things are changing. And, in the same way MP3 files and an iPod changed the distribution of music, there could be some "killer" app or device that suddenly reduces the demand for printed materials.
Super color scheme, I like it! Keep up the good work. Thanks for sharing this wonderful site with us.
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