Pre BEA Conference Highlights

The BEA exhibit hall doesn't open until tomorrow, but I have already been very impressed with the pre-conference! WOW! First, I stopped by the BEA info booth where a very knowledgeable *person* walked me through all the reasons to download the BEA event app on my iPhone. She was right, the app was just what I needed to organize my day! It was much easier to navigate than the website.
Next, I attended a FABULOUS session:
The E-Book Era is Now. What does it look like from the consumer perspective? And what do we do about it? Kelly Gallagher, General Manager, Business Intelligence, RR. Bowker, clearly articulated the growth and potential of the eBook market. In October, eBook sales grew by approximately 11%. Gallagher predicted that Amazon is getting more seriously into the content space and will soon break into the publishing stratosphere. Today's eBook *power buyer* is 66% female (compared to just 49% in 2009), with a household income of $77K, who reads mostly romance. 50% of all eBooks sold are fiction. 18% of these *power buyers* represent a whopping 61% of the total eBook purchases and most have a dedicated eReader.
What does this mean for libraries????
1. Libraries who are not purchasing eBooks need to do so, fast.
2. Ebook subscription services need to change to meet the needs of the library consumer.
3. Libraries need to have these same types of consumer studies that the publishers have
*Note* Bowker and Library Journal are partnering together to do this! Yay! Press Release slated to go out today.
4. Libraries need to become experts on the different types of eReader devices and provide options for patrons to try them out and be trained on how to use them.
5. Libraries need to have *video tutorials* on how to use their eBook subscription service for the FIRST time. Downloading the applications is often confusing, even for a tech savy individual.
6. Libraries and Consortiums should hire tech-savy teams to create better electronic delivery experiences with more options for social networking, eg. sharing recommendations with a friend etc.
None of this is necessarily "new" but it is certainly interesting to have been able to see the consumer market research driving next generation models. I highly recommend librarians to look beyond the "Bea Loves Librarians" program tracks to find the cutting edge research and technology. To find out more about consumer attitudes surveys and to suggest questions, contact Angela@BISG.org. If you need a great speaker to discuss current markets and predicting the future of ebooks, Kelly.Gallagher@bowker.com was great!

Anticipating Demand: Rhyme and Reason @ BEA

Librarians, how do you anticipate demand? Do your collection development policies address how to anticipate demand? Do you even know where to begin? Come to BEA on Wednesday, May 25, to hear Wendy Bartlett and Nora Rawlinson present an intriguing topic: “Caught short when a debut novel suddenly leaps onto the NYT Best Seller list? This session explores how to anticipate demand and stay ahead of heavy holds, even with a limited budget.” Prior to heading to the session, take a look at these two sites: Early Word and NovelMovies. If you have your own suggestions for staying ahead of the demand (including patron driven acquisition models) you want to share, please post!
Best,
Jill

eBooks and Publishers Demystified at BEA

How many of you really understand what the emerging eBook models distribution models actually entail?

As librarians, we know that eBooks is an inevitable, exciting time, which has created a buzz in our communities and some incredible challenges to the traditional library book circulation models. Almost as fast as I type, the eBook landscape is changing. No sooner thank we wrap our heads around the (need I say *challenges*) of the subscription model, we hit a brick wall with DRM *licensing* changes (26 anyone?)

Luckily in this information revolution world we are in, ways to examine this phenomenon are everywhere. Here are just a few that I can think of off of the top of my head! Please share your own experiences too...

Library Journal paved the way last year with their 2010 virtual eBook Summit. More than 2,500 librarians, publishers, vendors, and leaders came together to begin a shared conversation.

In 2005, Ohio was ahead of their time when they formed the state wide collaborative Ohio eBook Project.

COSLA released an eBook Feasibility Report for Public Libraries xxx which the call for a national buying pool was hotly reported by Library Journal.

Here in Connecticut, we responded by presenting a sold-out Trendspotting Symposium; eBooks: Collections at the Crossroads. Eli Neiburger rallied the troops with his keynote and a panel of industry leaders including Josh Marwell, Senior Editor, Harper Collins led to yet another Library Journal Article where the uncertain future of the 26 circulation model was brought to a national stage.

If you are anything like most librarians, the more you know about the eBook generation, the more you are craving to be part of the excitement. BEA is hosting a fantastic panel, moderated by Josh Hadro. I'm excited! Are you?

Selling Trade ebooks to Libraries: The Real Deal
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
11:00AM - 12:00PM

Location: 1E16
"In the last few years libraries have perceived a chilling effect in regard to trade ebook distribution models and library sales. Two of the ‘Big Six” publishers, Macmillan and Simon & Schuster do not sell ebooks to libraries. The new HarperCollins ‘26 Circs’ model via OverDrive has provoked anger in some and dismay in many. Librarians will discuss their ideas about how to transform ebook distribution models into a win/win for publishers, aggregators and library customers. These librarians will debunk the myths about libraries and ebooks How do libraries select ebooks? How can you facilitate sales via the library channel? What are the preferred terms of sale/lease, access models, etc.? Is piracy really a threat?"

BEA Librarian Favorites: Speed Dating with Children's Authors

Last week I was at the Connecticut Library Association Conference, and I had many conversations about BEA! Folks are busy planning their agendas using the My BEA Show Planner, which also has a mobile app for last minute changes.

I will be posting daily highlights about events that come highly recommended from librarians. If you have a favorite program for me to write about (or would like to write about it!) please email me: jhughes@ctlibrarians.org

Now, a highlight from Heather Baker, Head of Children's Services, Canton Public Library, endorsing the Speed Dating with Children's Authors Event. It was covered by NPR last year and more information can be found on the American Booksellers Association website.

"If you are attending [BEA] on Tuesday, this is my absolute favorite event...I know, you may have heard me gush about it before.

You leave with a pile of advanced copies and books, often signed by the authors, and you've MET all the authors before you leave! Truly a wonderful and incredibly memorable way to spend an hour and a half of your life."

Speed Dating With Children's Authors

Presented by the ABC Children's Group at ABA and the Children's Book Council.

10:30 am - 12:00 pm Rooms 1E09 and 1E10

Open to Booksellers, Librarians & Other Children's Book Professionals

Must reserve your spot in advance by emailing 2011speeddate@cbcbooks.org with your full name, store, library, or company affiliation, store address (street, city, state, and zip), and email address.

Get to know 19 children's book creators up close and personal! Authors and illustrators will move from table to table, stopping for quick get-to-know-you chats. This is a fun and easy way to get up to "speed" on some of the latest and greatest projects of the season.

Scheduled to appear:

· David A. Adler, Mystery Math: A First Book of Algebra (Holiday House)

· Jennifer Lynn Barnes, Trial By Fire / Every Other Day (Egmont)

· Jane Hampton Cook, What Does the President Look Like? (Kane Miller)

· James Dashner, The Death Cure (Random House)

· Laura Lee Gulledge, Page By Paige (Abrams)

· Jeff Hirsch, The Eleventh Plague (Scholastic)

· Carrie Jones, After Obsession (Bloomsbury)

· Alan Katz, Mosquitoes Are Ruining My Summer; Me Me Mine; Poems I Wrote When No One Was Looking (Simon & Schuster)

· Jon Klassen, I Want My Hat Back (Candlewick)

· Tahereh Mafi, Shatter Me (HarperCollins)

· Kate McMullan, Myth-o-Mania series (Capstone)

· Jennifer Roy, MindBlind (Marshall Cavendish)

· Marie Rutkoski, The Jewel of the Kalderash (Macmillan)

· Clete Smith, Aliens on Vacation (Disney)

· Ashley Spires, Binky Under Pressure (Kids Can)

· Susan Stockdale, Bring on the Birds (Peachtree)

· Laini Taylor, Daughter of Smoke and Bone (Little, Brown)

· Linda Urban, Hound Dog True (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)

· Meg Wolitzer, The Fingertips of Duncan Dorfman (Penguin)

Did you learn about a new book last year or make a new connection with a children's author at the speed dating event? Tell me your story!

Best,

Jill