Patterns of Adoption of Electronic Publishing Innovations among Nigerian Publishers — Emmanuel Ifeduba and Godwin Shoki
Abstract
This study investigates patterns of electronic publishing innovations among Nigerian publishers. The survey method was employed using a questionnaire, interview guide and observation guide. The results show that electronic publishing innovations were adopted by the majority of the publishers and printers. The study concludes that Nigerian publishers adopted only those innovations that have become imperative for their success while slowly adopting others, especially ones that make the least demand on their finances. Their level of commitment favours foreign publishers whose products they market and whose facilities they use for online distribution.
The Study
There are indications that electronic publishing is becoming a major mode of publishing in many countries. Tiamiyu (2005, p. 147) observes:
| “The global information and electronic revolution continues to transform the different publishing processes, from manuscript development, through book production, distribution and marketing, to financial accounting and business management.” |
As e–publishing continues to account for greater percentages of published works in this era of globalization, an understanding of the principles and acquisition of the skills becomes imperative for Nigerian publishers. The need to embrace the change is made more obvious from views expressed by local book printers who operate in a technologically changing environment.
According to Uchenunu (2005, p. 22), Nigerian printers are keeping their minds open for new ways and have accepted that their clients demand consistent adoption of innovations to keep their global image. He states that print operators in Nigeria are beginning to embrace the inevitable change. There are nine Heidelberg Direct Imaging (D.I.) machines located at six D.I. centres across the country. With these machines, a step is taken towards total digitization. He states:
| “By downloading straight from the Internet, zip, CD, etc. without colour separation on films, D.I. printing has removed human error easily noticed in other conventional print processes … buyers enjoy impeccable print quality comparable to the best in the world.” |
Another development is that the government is already thinking of assisting in the provision of some basic infrastructure to make e–publishing feasible in Nigeria. Adio (2004, p. 41) states:
| “Nigeria cannot afford to exist outside the new world information order. Thus the present idea of the Nigerian University Commission on a Virtual Digital Library that links the university libraries to the world is a welcome idea, and this will serve as an impetus to other higher institutions, public and special institutional libraries to chart a new course in the discharge of their responsibilities.” |
Implicit in this statement is that publishers who fail to digitize their current lists and future titles may lose out in the emerging e–publishing market, thereby leaving Nigerian readers to the mercy of foreign publishers.
Though there seem to be indications of adoption, some think that Nigerian publishers are yet to adopt relevant innovations in large numbers. This is the position of Nwankwo (2005, p. 173–83). He states that what the local publishers need to acquire in order to get involved include:
Software for the digitizing and coding of text;
Hardware for the digitizing and coding of text;
Reliable Internet access;
Skills for digitization; and,
Skills for the uploading of text.
Nwankwo’s experimentations with Print on Demand (POD) also show that some attempts are being made to embrace e–publishing innovations. Obidiegwu (2006, p. 10) also says that “there is only a tiny (local) market,” arguing that “Nigerian publishers can reach out to European and American markets… .” These views, counter views and insights call for investigation of the status of e–publishing innovations among Nigerian publishers.
Problems
There is a paucity of empirical evidence on the status of electronic publishing innovations in Nigeria, probably due to the newness of e–publishing. There are, however, signs of adoption of e–publishing innovations. The discernible signs, though, may not serve as sufficient basis for categorical statements on the subject. This study therefore seeks to investigate the aspects of e–publishing adopted by Nigerian publishers, the extent of adoption and the different ways which print book publishers, book printers, optical disc publishers and booksellers have adopted or failed to adopt them.
Answers Will Be Provided To the Following Questions:
What are the discernible patterns of adoption of e–publishing innovations among the four segments of the publishing industry — print book publishers, book printers, optical disc publishers and booksellers?
What are the views of the publishers on the adoption of e–publishing innovations in Nigeria?
Theoretical Framework
This study is conducted using the Innovation Diffusion Theory and the Technological Determinism Theory. Nwodu (2006, p. 102) defines innovation diffusion as the:
| “strategic exposure of change target to new idea, object or practice or practice (that is, innovation) in a manner that they would pay attention to understand, internalize and adopt the new idea, object or practice (which is diffusion) for their own benefit.” |
According to Nwodu (2006) diffusion means the spread of a given new idea or practice over time, via specifiable channels through some social structures:
| “This theory assumes the existence of change targets. That there are change agents who are responsible for the introduction of new ideas or practices. That diffusion is hardly in effect. That the process of diffusion may be fast on.” |
Methodology
The descriptive survey research method was employed. Its population was of traditional paperback publishing firms, book printers, bookshops, and optical disc and cassette makers in Nigeria. Stratified and simple sampling techniques were used on a proportion of respondents in Southwest Nigeria as seen below:
| Table 1: Proportion of Publishers in the Southwest Zone. Source: NPA, NCC and ANP secretariats. | ||||
| Serial Number | Population Strata | National | Southwest | Percent |
| 1 | Publishers | 127 | 89* | 70.6 |
| 2 | Printers | 191 | 136* | 73.5 |
| 3 | Optical Disc publishers | NA | 15 | |
| 4 | Booksellers | NA | NA | |
| Total | 318 | 240 | 72.1 | |
Since the focus of this study is on the patterns of adoption, it is considered appropriate, in the light of these scholarly positions, to describe the patterns observed among the four strata of the publishing industry.
The number of organizations that make up the population is too large to allow for individual examination in this study. It becomes necessary, therefore, to narrow down the scope by way of sampling. (See Appendices 1–3 for a comprehensive list of the members of the Nigerian Publishers Association (NPA), Association of Nigerian Printers (ANP), and the Nigerian Copyrights Commission (NCC)).
Scope
The scope of the study is delineated in the terms of space and time. The unwieldy geographical size of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the thousands of printers, publishers and CD replication studios scattered across the 36 states and the limited resources available for the study necessitates that the scope be limited to printers and publishers in the southwestern geo–political zone of Nigeria. The Southwest, comprising Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, and Ekiti states, is most suited in the sense that well over 72 percent of the population live in that zone.
Research Instruments
Four instruments suitable for survey research were designed to gather data. They were:
Questionnaire
Interview guide for book printers
Interview guide for optical disc publishers
Observation guide for bookshops
For the publishers, a 24–item questionnaire was designed containing ordinal, nominal, screener and other relevant question types. For the printers, who are generally not as literate as the publishers, a 19–item interview guide was designed while a 16–item interview guide was designed to collect data from publishers of optical discs. Observation was employed to examine the available electronic book products in bookshops. The observation guide contains a list of nine electronic book products.
Presentation and Discussion of Data
The data are presented in the following order: Hardware innovations, software innovations, skill acquisition innovations, Internet conduit innovations, marketing/distribution innovations, and e–product innovations under each question.
| Table 2: Identified Hardware Innovations. | |||
| Serial Number | Hardware Features | Available | Not Available |
| 1 | Computers | Available | |
| 2 | Compact discs | Available | |
| 3 | Diskettes | Available | |
| 4 | POD printing machines | Not Available | |
| 5 | Laser films | Available | |
| 6 | Camera–ready artwork | Available | |
| Total | 5 | 1 | |
Out of the six general hardware features identified, five are present among local publishers while one (POD printing machines) is not available among the sampled publishers. Neither the book printers/disc publishers nor the print book publishers indicated that they have seen the machine.
| Table 3: Identified Software Innovations. | |||
| Serial Number | Software Features | Available | Not Available |
| 1 | Typesetting/Design packages | Available | |
| 2 | Setting up/interchange software | Available | |
| 3 | Uploading/downloading software | Available | |
| 4 | Conversion and development | Available | |
| 5 | Content management system | Available | |
| Total | 5 | 0 | |
All of the five software features identified are available among sampled publishers. This implies that the basic software reported by Nwankwo (2005) to be unavailable is now available.
| Table 4: Identified Software Innovations. | |||
| Serial Number | Conduit/Process Features | Available | Not Available |
| 1 | E–mail addresses | Available | |
| 2 | Web sites | Available | |
| 3 | Internet facility | Available | |
| Total | 3 | 0 | |
The three conduit innovations that aid e–publishing through the Internet are available among the sampled publishers. The extent and pattern are discussed below.
| Table 5: Identified E–publishing Skills. | |||
| Serial Number | E–publishing Skills | Available | Not Available |
| 1 | Production skill | Available | |
| 2 | Lithographic skill | Available | |
| 3 | Typesetting/design skill | Available | |
| 4 | Uploading/downloading skill | Available | |
| Total | 4 | 0 | |
| Table 6: Identified Marketing/Distribution Devices/Practices in Use. | |||
| Serial Number | Device/Practice | Available | Not Available |
| 1 | Internet bookstores | NA | |
| 2 | Print–on–Demand | Available | |
| 3 | Electronic Indexes/OPAC | Available | |
| 4 | Internet Co–publishing | NA | |
| 5 | E–serialisation | NA | |
| 6 | E–pricing/fulfillment | NA | |
| 7 | E–advertisements | Available | |
| 8 | E–books in handsets | Available | |
| 9 | Virtual libraries/schools/communities | NA | |
| Total | 4 | 5 | |
The level of Internet connectivity among cassette/CD publishers varies. Four, representing 50 percent, own e–mail addresses, three or 37.5 percent have Internet facilities while none has a Web site. This implies that four, or 50 percent, have no e–mail addresses while five or 62.5 percent are not connected to the Internet.
| Table 7: E–marketing Practices Adopted by Print Book Publishers. | ||||
| Serial Number | E–practice | Number of Responses | Percentage | Number of Titles |
| 1 | Print–on–Demand | 7 | 31.8 | 1,150 |
| 2 | Diskettes | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | CD–ROM | 3 | 13.63 | 27 |
| 4 | Via Internet bookstores | 3 | 13.63 | 35 |
| 5 | Cassette tapes | 4 | 18.18 | 6 |
| 6 | Personal digital assistant | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Print books with CD–ROM | 8 | 45.45 | 65 |
| 8 | Online serialization | 0 | 0 | NA |
| 9 | Internet co–publishing | 2 | 9.09 | NA |
| 10 | Online book advertisements | 8 | 36.36 | 3,400 |
| 11 | E–publishing partnership | 10 | 45.45 | NA |
| 12 | E–book | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 13 | Audio CD | 0 | 0 | 0 |
The nature of e–publishing is such that a publishing firm can enter the industry from the areas of editing and processing, printing, or marketing. The study therefore attempted to find out if the sampled publishers have adopted any e–marketing and distribution practices in the sale of their books.
Ten responses (45 percent) were returned from e–publishing partnerships. Among the practices indicated were editorial, design, consultancy, and sales collaborations that were not listed in the questionnaire. This is an indication of increase in global outlook by local publishers. Following this is online book advertisements, for which eight responses representing 36.36 percent were returned. It is also noteworthy that seven publishers (31.8 percent) are involved in Print on Demand (POD), all in partnership with the African Books Collective (ABC). None had produced e–books, books on diskettes, print books with CD–ROMs, or personal digital assistants (PDA). Three positive responses, representing 13.63 percent, were returned for CD–ROM, Internet bookstores and online books, while four (18.18 percent) and two (9.09 percent) were recorded for cassette tapes and Internet co–publishing.
| Table 8: Electronic Book Products and Devices Published by Print Book Publishers. | |||
| Serial Number | Product/Device | Responses | Percent |
| 1 | E–book | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | PDA | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Microfilm | 0 | 0 |
| 4 | CD–ROM | 3 | 13.63 |
| 5 | Instant books | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Books with CD–ROM | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Books in audio CD | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | Books in cassette tapes | 2 | 9.09 |
| 9 | Books in diskettes | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 5 | 22.72 | |
The table shows that three respondents indicated that they produced and published CD–ROMs while two respondents indicated that they published books in cassettes. The fact that the disc publishers indicated that at least one CD–ROM has been produced for a bank suggests that the responses might be valid. It is also possible for a publisher in the southwest to produce his e–book products outside the southwest. Why these products could not be found in any of the sampled bookshops cannot be easily explained.
| Table 9: Publishers’ Electronic Book Production Devices. | ||||
| Serial Number | E–products | Number of Respondents | Percent | Number of Titles |
| 1 | Audio cassettes | 2 | 25 | 2 |
| 2 | Audio CD | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | CD–ROM | 1 | 12.5 | 1 |
| 4 | Microfilm | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 | E–book | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | VCD | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Master CD | 1 | 12.5 | 1 |
| 8 | No response (blank) | 4 | 50 | 0 |
| Total | 5 | 22.72 | ||
Having found by observation that the sampled publishers have hundreds of musical CDs, cassettes and VCDs to their credit, the study proceeded to find out if they have published any electronic books by any of these means. The data show that two respondents produced two titles in audio cassette for churches. One respondent produced a CD–ROM for a commercial bank while another produced a master CD–ROM for another client. They all believe that there is no demand for such products. No respondent produced books in audio CD, microfilm, VCD or e–books. Four respondents (50 percent) did not respond to the question.
Conclusion
From the analysed data, it is safe to conclude that e–publishing has many interesting features that are easy and cost effective to adopt in Nigeria. Many of these innovations have been adopted by the majority of local publishers.
Innovations that aid setting, editing, digitizing, uploading and downloading book products are already adopted by a reasonable number of publishers. They seem to be afraid, however, of exploring the local market possibilities for fear of lack of energy infrastructures, appropriate reading habits and computer literacy. For this reason they concentrate on the global market by selling e–products to foreigners through the London–based African Book Collective and by distributing imported e–products to local readers. In case they care to develop the CD–ROM and audio CD markets, however, the technology appears to be available.
Printing hardware has not changed much with only 28 percent adoption for machines with digital facilities, sometimes for the printing of annual reports, calendars and outdoor posters rather than books. The CD replication studios seem to have concluded that Nigerians are not ready for book products. They have therefore turned their attention to music CDs. Their face–off with the Copyrights Commission seems to suggest that they are having a field day in the music sub–sector. In a story with the headline “NCC Seizes Pirated CDs, DVDs, Worth N10 Million in Lagos” The Punch (2007) painted a picture of the battle raging between the NCC and the replication studios:
| “Yesterday (Wednesday) we dealt with replication outfits that refused to comply with the rules and regulations. To ensure that piracy is tamed at source, the Optical Disc Regulations (Act) was enacted. But up till now many of the operators have not complied with the rules.” |
The essence of the above statement is to buttress the conclusion that the technology for the local production of optical discs has been widely adopted, but employed in the production of musical rather than book products.
Recommendations
In light of the innovations adopted, the ones not yet adopted, limited application of the innovations, and the infrastructural, cultural and educational constraints identified, the following proposals are recommended:
The Federal Government should go on with the proposed provision of the Virtual Digital Library to link the nation’s university libraries with the outside world. They should involve the Nigerian Publishers Association (NPA). This will encourage members of the NPA to digitize not only internationally demanded titles but to expand the endangered tertiary market.
The print book publishers, printers, Reading Association of Nigeria, public libraries and optical disc publishers in the country should convene a conference to work out modalities for tackling the problem of computer literacy and forward their views to the government.
Practical computer education should be integrated in the curriculum for all levels of education in Nigeria. This is absolutely necessary since the success of e–publishing is largely dependent on media literacy.
The Nigerian Publishers Association should liaise with Rank Xerox and AGFA Corporations to find a solution to the need for POD printing machines in universities and other institutions in Nigeria.
The problem of electricity supply should be handled with seriousness by the federal government.
Individual publishers should liaise with university libraries and university presses to work out modalities for publishing scholarly journals and textbooks in electronic formats.
For specialized scholarly books without mass appeal, it will be appropriate to produce CD–ROM. This can be done locally by optical disc publishers. The NPA should therefore co–ordinate such a project.
More publishers should take advantage of the opportunities offered by the African Books Collective.
Courses on e–publishing and media literacy should be introduced by all universities offering publishing programmes.
References
Adio, G. 2004. “The role of information communication technologies in the dissemination of information: a new challenge for librarians.” Nigerian Library and Information Science Review 22, no.2: 37–42.
Nwankwo, V. 2005. “Print on demand: an African publisher’s experience.” In Adesanoye and Ojeniyi (eds.) Issues in book publishing in Nigeria. Ibadan: Heinemann Educational Books.
Nwodu, L.C. 2001. “Research and ICT’s relevance in innovation diffusion.” Nigerian Journal of Communications 4, nos.1/2: 100–108.
Obidiegwu, O. 2006. “Enhancing productivity in the publishing industry.” The Publisher 13, no. 1: 3–10.
The Punch. 2007. Friday, December 14: 50.
Uchenunu, S.A. 2005. “D.I. printing in Nigeria: what impact?.” Printers Digest 25, September/October: 22–24.
About the authors
Emmanuel Ifeduba, Dept. of Communication & Language Arts, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Godwin Shoki, PhD, Dept. of Communication & Language Arts, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, Nigeria.
Direct comments to: Shokend1 [at] yahoo [dot] co [dot] uk