In reading Alison Flood the Guardian article ”Libraries have had their day “he describes libraries to be irrelevant. Flood claims that libraries have been around too long and peoples attitude around libraries have to change. Before reading this article I was unaware how much libraries affect authors profits. Flood demonstrates how authors only make a 20 percent profit from their books being borrowed from the library. He states, “The libraries are doing nothing for the book industry. They give nothing back, whereas bookshops selling the book, authors and publishers get paid”(Flood)
From my very own experience at college the most profitable way to acquire a textbook is by borrowing it from the library. Students prefer the used and convenient textbook to the brand new pricey addition. As local bookshops go out of business revenue for authors and illustrates declines as well. Flood believes books are part of the entertainment industry.
One cannot only blame libraries for the decline in profits in the book industry. Instead, authors should blame the Internet as well. The Internet has now become a source where any piece of content can be accessed for free. It’s as simple as searching for PDF versions and downloading torrents just off the connection of Wi-Fi. In our current society people are constantly find ways to illegally consume different sources of content from movies to music, applications to even books. Heading into the future I’m very curious to see how will authors battle against this major issue that slowly destroys their industry.
