The case for publishers turning towards eBooks is black and white.
But mostly it's green.
There are three major areas where a publisher of eBooks stands to gain over the publisher of traditional paper books.
The first is environmental.
Let's face it; an eBook is green compared to the printed book.
I used to work in the pulp and paper industry and while the companies tried to be efficient environmentally -- they didn't succeed.
Pulp and paper is the biggest consumer of forests in the world today.
Forests are a key element in our ecological well being.
A single tree can clean enough air to keep 2 people supplied with oxygen.
Not to mention the effect on ground water and animal life.
And never forget that pulp and paper is heavy manufacturing.
Many pulp and paper mills are forced to build their own electric facilities in order to provide sufficient power to power the huge machines they rely on.
Some of these are hydro-electric but many are scrap wood, black liquor and gas fired.
Not to mention the electrical consumption of the huge printing presses used to produce today's mass market books.
But it isn't just the mill and printer that are huge energy hogs.
Logging is a huge energy sink.
From the large cutters and other vehicles in the lumber camp to the large tandem trucks used to haul the wood to the mill.
And pulp and paper mills are severe pollution sources.
The smell of a mill permeates the town it's in.
You haven't lived until you've been in a mill town and realized that the wind is blowing the opposite way.
The stench continues unabated because the walls of the hotels have absorbed the smell of the mill.
And the air isn't the only element affected.
Pulp and paper mills use vast quantities of chlorine and produce even more massive quantities of black liquor (a waste product).
Despite the best efforts of the mill, mistakes happen and those chemicals (and worse) frequently end up in the ground water.
The second area of potential green for the publisher of eBooks is profit.
eBooks have very little cost unlike a paper book.
Nor do they require a great deal of inventory.
Traditionally, paper publishing has lost money more than it made money.
Print runs need to be very large in order to keep the costs low enough to be profitable.
If a book fails to live up to its promise (and most don't) then it is necessary to write off the inventory.
On the other hand, eBooks do not have inventory.
It isn't necessary to write off anything if the book fails to sell as anticipated.
The final area of potential green is related to profit.
While the market is still limited, it is growing and will become very powerful over the next ten years.
The companies which embrace and ride the wild ups and downs of this market will be well placed to dominate the eBook market of the future.
Market share and marketing knowledge gained in this market will be a dominant factor in the success of the future.
But mostly it's green.
There are three major areas where a publisher of eBooks stands to gain over the publisher of traditional paper books.
The first is environmental.
Let's face it; an eBook is green compared to the printed book.
I used to work in the pulp and paper industry and while the companies tried to be efficient environmentally -- they didn't succeed.
Pulp and paper is the biggest consumer of forests in the world today.
Forests are a key element in our ecological well being.
A single tree can clean enough air to keep 2 people supplied with oxygen.
Not to mention the effect on ground water and animal life.
And never forget that pulp and paper is heavy manufacturing.
Many pulp and paper mills are forced to build their own electric facilities in order to provide sufficient power to power the huge machines they rely on.
Some of these are hydro-electric but many are scrap wood, black liquor and gas fired.
Not to mention the electrical consumption of the huge printing presses used to produce today's mass market books.
But it isn't just the mill and printer that are huge energy hogs.
Logging is a huge energy sink.
From the large cutters and other vehicles in the lumber camp to the large tandem trucks used to haul the wood to the mill.
And pulp and paper mills are severe pollution sources.
The smell of a mill permeates the town it's in.
You haven't lived until you've been in a mill town and realized that the wind is blowing the opposite way.
The stench continues unabated because the walls of the hotels have absorbed the smell of the mill.
And the air isn't the only element affected.
Pulp and paper mills use vast quantities of chlorine and produce even more massive quantities of black liquor (a waste product).
Despite the best efforts of the mill, mistakes happen and those chemicals (and worse) frequently end up in the ground water.
The second area of potential green for the publisher of eBooks is profit.
eBooks have very little cost unlike a paper book.
Nor do they require a great deal of inventory.
Traditionally, paper publishing has lost money more than it made money.
Print runs need to be very large in order to keep the costs low enough to be profitable.
If a book fails to live up to its promise (and most don't) then it is necessary to write off the inventory.
On the other hand, eBooks do not have inventory.
It isn't necessary to write off anything if the book fails to sell as anticipated.
The final area of potential green is related to profit.
While the market is still limited, it is growing and will become very powerful over the next ten years.
The companies which embrace and ride the wild ups and downs of this market will be well placed to dominate the eBook market of the future.
Market share and marketing knowledge gained in this market will be a dominant factor in the success of the future.