Abstracts
Abstract
By departing from the Nordic countries, the purpose is to explain and conceptualize how subscription-based streaming services for books operate in the contemporary book trade, and furthermore to discuss what effects these new business models are causing regarding the production, distribution, and consumption of books. A model is proposed that outlines the aspects of streaming services and the relationships to other actors involved. The model illustrates how streaming services affect the entire chain of publishing, and influence the constitution of books in contemporary digital culture. Since audiobooks are by far most popular, the production get altered to suit this format. Streaming services themselves also act as publishers, which makes them powerful. Distributional aspects are both more complex and more important in streaming services than in traditional book retailing. When consumption is transferred to digital platforms, the distributional frame and the final product converge, and consumer data becomes a key source of information.
Keywords:
- Streaming,
- audiobooks,
- Ebooks,
- digital book distribution,
- Subscription‑based book sales
Résumé
À partir du cas des pays nordiques, l’article cherche à décrire et à conceptualiser le fonctionnement des plateformes de diffusion en continu de livres au sein du marché du livre. Il s’intéresse également à l’incidence de ces nouveaux modèles d’affaires sur la production, la distribution et la consommation de livres. Les différents aspects des plateformes de diffusion en continu y sont modélisés, dont les liens entretenus avec divers autres acteurs du livre. Le modèle met en évidence la manière dont ces plateformes affectent toute la chaine de l’édition et influencent la constitution des livres au sein de la culture numérique actuelle. La popularité des livres audios est telle que la production du livre doit se plier aux exigences de ce format. Les plateformes de diffusion en continu elles-mêmes font office d’éditeurs, ce qui leur confère du pouvoir. La distribution est à la fois plus complexe et plus sensible dans ces plateformes que dans le commerce du livre traditionnel. En effet, lorsque la consommation du livre passe par des plateformes numériques, la structure de la distribution et le produit final convergent, et les données clients deviennent une source d’information inestimable.
Mots-clés :
- Diffusion en continu,
- livres audios,
- livres électroniques,
- distribution numérique de livres,
- vente de livres par abonnement
Appendices
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