Digital publishing readiness in Nigeria’s print book market

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to examine the extent of production of digital book titles and deployment of e-promotion and how they correlate with school, library, bookshop, consumer and author readiness, with a view to enhancing publishers’ understanding of and participation in e-publishing, which is now crucial for growth and sustainability Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire was completed by 109 publishing firms, 79 publishing websites were observed in search of digital titles and e-promotion, and data were analysed using the SPSS to compute frequencies, percentages and correlates of digital publishing innovation adoption Findings It is found that 2014 digital titles (mainly textbooks and scholarly content) were issued in four formats by 33 out of 109 firms. Authors and consumers were perceived to be more digital-ready than libraries, schools and bookshops. There was a significant relationship between the issuance of digital titles and author readiness (r = 0. 372), consumer readiness (r = 0.338) and library readiness (r = 0.255). There was also a significant relationship between the adoption of e-promotion and consumer readiness (r = 0.381) and author readiness (r = 0.265). Originality/value Book publishing innovation research, especially in Africa, focuses mainly on the adoption of mobile devices, infrastructural challenges and reading habits, paying inadequate attention to the correlates of digital publishing adoption. The results of this study, therefore, shed light on the correlates of digital publishing adoption and should help interested publishers and scholars to understand that author, consumer and library readiness are important determinants of digital publishing adoption, especially in developing economies.