Collections of media such as music, movies, and software are becoming an obsolete thing of the past. Digital storage devices allow us to save all of our entertainment in one easy to access location. We no longer have to worry about scratched audio discs or movies skipping because digital files eliminate any physical flaws. With all other forms of media turning to the digital side, physical copies of books are still prominent in schools, libraries, and the homes of almost all Americans.
While the ebook revolution has not hit its full stride, it will become an inevitable fact that physical books will become a thing of the past. This will have a major impact on how we as a society receive our information.
Recently, the Border’s book chain filed for bankruptcy because they did not assimilate to the digital marketplace soon enough. Companies like Barnes & Noble and Amazon have developed eReaders that allow customers to purchase digital content directly from their websites. The innovation of eReaders has made it easier to view information at any given time.
Border’s main retail problem was their reliance on their rewards club for marketing information and their lack of attention to their ecommerce site where they could have gotten information with Quick Surveys. Now the only thing left of the former retail giant is their website which has to compete with the other two big names. With the elimination of Border’s, the two other websites might collude and restrict access to materials not deemed appropriate.
There are many studies that show that people who get their information from tablets don’t retain as much information as those who get it from newspapers and other physical sources. With the decline of the print paper, people have turned to online new sources like Huffington Post, AOL, and Politico to get their information. While this is a convenient way to get news, it takes the local spin off of it and homogenizes stories for a national audience.
Another problem that eReaders pose is a hindrance to those who aren’t as financially well off. According an article on Slate, eReaders give an advantage to the wealthy by taking the free information available at most libraries and only giving access to those who can afford advanced devices. Cheaper models of eReaders will become available, but still won’t be free.
There are still some problems left to work out in the age of digital information. Hopefully making everything available online will allow more information to pass through instead of hindering it.
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