You may be surprised to hear that for most, old school print on paper still wins.

你聽到這個可能很驚訝，對大多數老派的人來說，印刷書還是完勝。

Despite digital media having disrupted many other industries.

雖然數位媒體擾亂了許多產業。

67% of Americans had read a physical book in 2017, but only 26% read an e-book.

2017 年有 67％ 的美國人讀過實體書，但只有 26％ 的人讀過電子書。

So, why do people still prefer print over the convenience of reading on a smartphone, Kindle or Kobo?

那麼，為什麼大家仍偏愛印刷書，勝於智慧型手機、Kindle 或 Kobo 的便利性。

You might think that electronic books, more commonly known as e-books, are relatively new.

你可能會覺得電子書，更常見是叫 e-book，相對是新的東西。

But an initiative called Project Gutenberg claims to have started them all the way back in 1971.

但是，一項名為古騰堡計劃的倡議，早在 1971 年就開始提倡。

Today, it still publishes books online, focusing on older works where the American copyright

現在，它仍在線上出版書籍，主要是美國版權已過期的老作品

has expired so it can offer them for free.

因此可以免費提供。

The modern e-book came around in 2007, when Amazon launched its Kindle in New York.

現在的電子書出現在 2007 年，當時亞馬遜在紐約推出 Kindle。

It went on sale for $399 and was reported to have sold out in just five and a half hours.

它的售價為 399 美元，據報導僅花了 5 個半小時就賣光。

By 2010, Amazon announced it was selling more e-books than hardcover printed books.

到了2010 年，亞馬遜宣布電子書的銷售比精裝印刷書來得多。

At the time, many questioned the future of hardcovers and their relevance in the digital age.

當時，許多人質疑精裝書的未來以及在數位時代的意義。

While the Kindle popularized e-books, the book industry is still dominated by physical versions.

雖然 Kindle 推廣電子書，但出版業仍以實體書為主。

I met up with Meryl Halls, managing director of the Booksellers' Association, to learn why.

我找到了書商協會的董事總經理 Meryl Halls，來了解其中的原因。

Print's been incredibly resilient actually, I think the e-book bubble has burst somewhat,

印刷品其實適應力很好，我想電子書已經沒有那麼盛行了，

the sales are flattening off, I think the physical object is very appealing.

但銷售逐漸平緩，我想實體書還是很有吸引力。

So the cover designs are often gorgeous, they're beautiful objects,

封面設計往往很華麗，它們都很漂亮，

The book lover loves to have a record of what they've read

書迷喜歡紀錄他們閱讀的東西，

and it's about signalling to the rest of the world, it's about decorating your home.

它是向世界其他地方發出信號，也是美化你家的東西

In 2018, more than 2.7 billion books in all formats were sold in the U.S.,

2018年，各類格式的書在美國賣出超過 27 億本。

for an estimated net revenue of almost $26 billion for publishers.

出版商的淨收入估計將近 260 億美元。

And that's just the value of all books directly sold by publishers to retailers.

這些所有書的價值，只是出版社直接賣給零售商的。

Of that amount, around $22 billion-worth were printed books,

其中約有 220 億美元是印刷書

$2 billion were e-books and $1.2 billion were audio books.

20 億是電子書，12 億是有聲書。

In the U.K. the same year, publishers' sales of printed and e-books topped $8 billion,

同年在英國，出版商印刷書和電子書的銷售額突破 80 億美元，

with printed books taking $4.5 billion of that.

其中印刷書佔 45 億美元。

Cookbooks are, they're having a resurgence, nature writing and nature books are doing

食譜又再度熱賣，自然寫作和自然類書籍也賣得很好

incredibly well and it's partly the political landscape, people are looking for escape

這部分是因為政治環境的關係，大家都在逃避，

but they are also looking for information, it's harder to have an emotional relationship with

但他們也在尋找資訊，如果你是閱讀電子書的話

what you're reading if it's on an e-reader.

就很難與你閱讀的東西建立情感關係。

It's obviously cheaper to produce e-books than print copies, but the number of printed books

製作電子書明顯比印刷書便宜，但出版商向美國和英國零售商

sold by publishers to retailers in the U.S. and U.K. also outstrips the number of downloaded books.

銷售的印刷書數量，也超過了電子書的下載次數。

Even the kind of books people like to read in print versus on an e-reader varies.

甚至說大家喜歡看的書在印刷和電子書上也不同。

In the U.K., readers prefer fiction categories like crime, thriller and romance on their e-readers,

在英國，讀者偏愛在電子書上閱讀小說類，像是犯罪、驚悚和浪漫類

but children's books are still dominated by print.

但童書仍是由印刷書主導。

High profile launches like Three Women and of course, the Fifty Shades of Grey franchise,

像《三個女人》和《格雷的五十道陰影》這樣高調地推出，

have also boosted print sales.

也提升了印刷書的銷售。

But one study revealed that readers found it harder to recall the plot details of a short mystery story

但是有一項研究表明，用 Kindle 閱讀時，相比於在平裝書讀相同故事的人

when they read it on a Kindle, compared to those who read the same story in a paperback book.

讀者更難回憶起短篇神秘故事的劇情細節。

E-books really, a lot of innovation had started in the academic area of publishing,

確實電子書，在出版的學術領域開始了很多創新，

and then of course they came into trade publishing and I believe, started off with romantic fiction

當然，他們進入貿易出版業，我相信，從浪漫小說和

and possibly slightly erotic fiction because it was marvellous that you could read that

可能略帶色情的小說開始，因為你可以完全匿名地在公開場合

in public totally anonymously.

閱讀那些書，這是非常棒的事。

Traditional stores took a hit when Amazon started selling printed books online back in 1994.

亞馬遜於 1994 年開始在線上銷售印刷書時，對傳統書店來說是一大衝擊。

In 2011, U.S. chain Borders declared bankruptcy, while Barnes & Noble's sales

2011年，美國連鎖書店 Borders 宣布破產，而巴諾書店的銷售

have declined steadily for the past six years.

在過去六年則穩定下降。

In 2019, activist investor Elliott Management bought Barnes & Noble.

2019年，活躍的投資公司——埃利奧特管理公司買下巴諾書店。

And it also owns this U.K. chain, Waterstones, which has undergone a bit of a revolution in the past few years.

它還擁有這家英國連鎖書店——水磨石，它在過去幾年經歷了一點革命。

How have bookshops reacted to Amazon Kindle?

書店如何去應對亞馬遜的 Kindle？

Okay, well I think initially they were frightened and they did try and sell e-books,

好吧，我認為最初他們都覺得害怕，他們確實嘗試銷售電子書

but I think what they discovered very quickly is that bookshop customers

但我認為他們很快發現的是，書店客人

are coming into bookshops for a very particular reason.

走進書店都有很特別的原因。

Their shops, their spaces are very welcoming

他們的書店、空間都很受歡迎

and people are looking all the time for things to do that are not on screen.

大家總是在找不用在螢幕上做的事。

In 2015, Amazon opened its first physical bookstore in Seattle's University Village mall,

2015 年，亞馬遜在西雅圖大學村的購物中心，開了第一間實體書店

and it now has 19 outlets across the U.S.

目前在全美有 19 間專賣店。

It uses information on Kindle reading habits to inform what it sells.

其利用 Kindle 閱讀習慣的資訊來告知它們要賣什麼。

For example, it has an “unputdownable” section in-store,

舉例來說，店裡有個叫「愛不釋手」的專區，

which displays physical copies of books that Kindle readers finish in three days or less.

展示 Kindle 讀者在三天或以內可以閱讀完的書。

E-books have also been a way for new authors to get noticed by mainstream publishers.

電子書也成為新作家吸引主流出版商的一種方式。

Science fiction writer Hugh Howey published his e-book Wool in 2011.

科幻小說家休豪伊在 2011 年出版了他的電子書。

It went on to sell more than 300,000 copies.

當時賣出了超過 300,000 本。

And in 2012, American publisher Simon & Schuster bought the print rights.

而在 2012 年，美國書商西蒙與舒斯特買下其版權。

But not every author is a fan of e-books.

但不是每位作家都喜歡電子書。

The Catcher in the Rye author JD Salinger resisted digitizing his novels for years,

《麥田捕手》的作者 J.D. 沙林傑，好幾年來堅持不將他的小說數位化，

but in August 2019, his son Mark agreed to publish them as e-books,

但在 2019 年的 8 月，他的兒子同意將它們出版成電子書，

saying his father wanted to keep his work accessible and affordable.

他表示他父親想要作品可以容易獲得且買得起。

So, what's the future of books, in any format?

那麼，不論是任何格式的書籍，未來會長什麼樣？

While millennials get blamed for killing many industries, it's actually young people

雖然千禧世代的人因殺死許多產業受到指責，但其實似乎是年輕人

that appear to be driving sales of printed books, especially in the U.K.

在推動印刷書的銷售，尤其是在英國。

Sixty-three percent of physical book sales are to people under the age of 44,

實體書的銷售有百分之六十三是在 44 歲以下的人

while 52% of e-book sales are to those over 45.

而電子書銷量有 52％ 是在於 45 歲以上的人。

It's a similar picture in the U.S., where 75% of people aged 18 to 29

這與美國的情況類似，2017年，年齡在 18 至 29 歲間的人有 75％

claimed to have read a physical book in 2017, higher than the average of 67%.

表示有讀過實體書，高於平均的 67%。

People always need knowledge and people always need stories, will it be the written word,

大家總是需要知識，大家也總是需要故事，不論是書寫的文字

or will it be the spoken word, but it will still be stories and it will still be knowledge.

還是有聲文字，它仍然是故事，也仍然是知識。

The book, in whatever format, has a strong future.

不論是什麼格式的書，都有強烈的未來。

Thanks for watching.

感謝觀看。

To see more of our content, check out the videos on the right.

想看更多內容，請點擊右邊的影片。

And let us know in the comments below if you prefer old-school print or new-school e-books,

你比較喜歡老派的印刷書還是創新的電子書？在下方留言告訴我們

and don't forget to subscribe.

也別忘了訂閱。