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Print On Demand: Major Announcement Could Change How You Buy Books

Major Announcement Could Change How You Buy Books
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Print-on-demand (POD) books could soon be everywhere, according to a major announcement made today.

On Demand, the makers of the POD Espresso Book Machine currently installed in fewer than a hundred bookstores nationwide, have announced new partnerships with Eastman Kodak and ReaderLink Distribution Services.

Under the arrangement, the company's POD technology will be made available to retailers who have Kodak Picture Kiosks, currently installed in 105,000 locations according to Publishers Weekly, including drugstores and supermarkets.

ReaderLink, a major book distributor, will also bring book machines to more than 24,000 additional new outlets, as well as supplying commercially published titles to be printed on demand from the machines.

According to Dane Neller, CEO of On Demand, the Kodak connection will allow customers to create and print their own photo books in store, as well as printing self-published titles and any of the 7 million titles currently available through their system.

"You should be able to walk into a store, pick a title, [and then] pick it up after you're done shopping," he told The Huffington Post on the telephone from their New York headquarters. "We like to think of this as digital-to-print in retail locations."

Until now, instore print-on-demand technology has been restricted due to the costs of On Demand's Espresso Book machines, estimated by The Atlantic earlier this year as being "as much as $150,000." Otherwise, people have relied on internet-based companies to print copies of books to order.

However, by developing book-related services for more than 100,000 existing machines, printing your own fresh copy of a new or public-domain book may become commonplace.

"This is part of the digital transfer going on in the media space," says Neller. "Content is going directly to the consumer, via the Kindle or in print via our machines. We're bypassing the traditional supply chains."

Heller denied that this shift could threaten the future of real-world bookstores.

"While I anticipate there may be some overlap, I suspect the content [served by each kind of location] will be different. Customers who go to bookstores, they'll continue to want to go to those, and we'll serve that customer too."

The company is currently undergoing trials of their software and hardware. The expected launch, Neller says, is "certainly 2013, [though] it's possible this quarter."

Would you want to print your own copy of a book? Let us know in the comments!

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Before You Go

How To Save Bookstores
Specialize(01 of27)
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By focusing on a particular theme and not straying from it, the MIT Press Bookstore has a fanatical following."I spent a few hours here and I was amazed. Literally, every book here is an idea. I found so many interesting books that I had to write down all the titles. They have books published by the MIT Press, but also titles from other academic publishers. Whoever curates the selection is outstanding." -- Yelp review by Terri Y. (credit:Flickr: Tjeerd)
Have a beautiful space(02 of27)
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Not everyone can be the Ateneo bookstore in a former theater in Buenos Aires, (though Tattered Cover in Colorado has its own take on the former-theater vibe) but the more you create a space that people want to see inside, and stay inside, the more custom you'll have. (credit:Flickr: Leandro's World Tour)
Offer memberships(03 of27)
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Membership clubs, such as that of Skylight Books, make people feel connected, engages them more with what you're doing, and provides some much-needed cash up front. Member discounts also encourage local shopping, not super shipping.
Offer more than basic coffee(04 of27)
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If you have a coffee shop, make it more than another generic chain, but a destination in itself. Colophon Cafe inside Village Books in Fairhaven, WA is a local favorite for people who want a great, healthy meal. That it's within and overlapping with the bookstore is a win-win for everyone.
Host unusual events(05 of27)
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Readings? How staid. Why not host weird parties, music, celebrations, costume competitions, fan nights centered around books? That's what Brookline Booksmith did for the paperback launch of "The Night Circus," with themed food, decorations, costumes, a tarot card reader, a live band and dancers, and a fun and lively author Q+A. Readers who were there won't forget it in a hurry (and neither will we).
Show what good value print can be(06 of27)
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Witness what Strand Bookstore puts on its remaindered titles. Print, it's time to fight back.
Sell old books alongside new ones(07 of27)
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The Travel Bookshop in London became famous for putting really old books about travel destinations alongside new ones - you go in for a Lonely Planet, you come out with a first edition of TE Lawrence's thoughts on the Middle East. (credit:Flickr: pittaya)
Feature other printed media alongside books(08 of27)
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St Mark's Bookshop in New York has an unrivaled collection of incredible independent magazines alongside its book selection, creating a great cross pollination of print. (credit:Flickr: Liz Henry)
Don't ban cell phones(09 of27)
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Some bookstores have a 'no smartphone usage' policy. 'No rude talking on cell phones' is one thing, but 'no looking things up on Amazon' will only succeed in making people feel badly about the store. If they really want to buy a book on Amazon that they've looked at in your store, you won't stop them. Giving them a negative association with your store means they'll not only do it again - but probably not come back. (credit:Alamy)
Bundle books, movies and music together(10 of27)
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The new Hunger Games movie DVD comes in a variety of special-edition box sets with free pendants, backpacks, jewelry - but not the book. Yet as Small Demons demonstrates, books are connected to other cultural objects in myriad ways. Why not make those visible and offer special themed bundles?
Establish an ongoing relationship with well-known local creatives(11 of27)
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You don't have to wait until local names have a book out, so you can organize a signing.Identify peoples' favorite local authors, designers, creatives with cult audiences, and work with them to make special book jackets, bookmarks, posters, or other exclusive book-themed items. They could run bimonthly events or a one-off class.They'll love supporting their local store, and you'll get new products and increased local interest from another fan base. (credit:WikiMedia: Nightscream)
Curate a themed noticeboard(12 of27)
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We don't know if it's still there, but the travel bookstore Altair in Barcelona used to have an incredible feature: a noticeboard for people looking for travel partners. People would pass by and read to see where people were going, what adventures they could dream about joining - and maybe which journeys they might just make their own. (credit:Altair)
Bookstore, Library partnerships(13 of27)
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Bookstores are opening inside libraries. Why shouldn't both team up and find ways to celebrate reading together? (credit:Shutterstock)
Keychains(14 of27)
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It sounds ridiculous, but if people have your name on their keychain, they'll see it and touch it every day, and remember you're there. Make them free with memberships or sell them at cost - consider it a piece of effective guerrilla marketing. But you have to make them good enough (and small enough) for people to want to use!Image from LabelMakers on Cafepress.com
Make a nonprofit(15 of27)
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Kepler's is hiving off its community features into a new non-profit, giving it greater flexibility and financial advantages. (credit:Kepler's)
Host other events(16 of27)
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Bookstores have already been the venue for screenings, private parties, weddings, commemorations. Why not host read ins, book speed dating, geekouts and more? It certainly helps if you have a space like Powerhouse Books... (credit:Getty Images)
Hold classes(17 of27)
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Book Clubs are all well and good, but why not further people's reading and knowledge in other ways? Politics & Prose in Washington, DC offers a fantastic series of classes to its patrons. (credit:Politics & Prose)
Pool resources(18 of27)
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Create a group of small, non-competing booksellers around the country, and together pool resources to make something amazing that can only be sold in your stores (and not on your websites). For instance, what would happen if 15 booksellers all put in $1,000, and paid Neil Gaiman or Gillian Flynn or E.L. James to write an exclusive short story, printed on an Espresso Machine in one of the network's stores, and distributed between them? Image from ibooknet.com
Do literary-themed stunts(19 of27)
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Book Soup has gained a reputation for unexpected yet intelligent headline-grabbing stunts, including against Paris Hilton and Margaret Thatcher. The resultant sales and publicity did them no harm whatsoever. (credit:Gary Minnaert / Public Domain)
Sell other, high-quality book-themed products(20 of27)
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Take a leaf from STL Books, erm, book, and track down decent literary-themed suppliers such as Out of Print Clothing. (credit:Out Of Print Clothing)
Publish Books(21 of27)
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Increase your presence and help get cutting-edge work out into the world, while potentially creating a new revenue stream. City Lights in San Francisco has been doing that since 1955. Or you can save out-of-print titles, as Singularity & Co is working to do. (credit:Flickr: idleformat)
Print books(22 of27)
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Espresso Book Machines are starting to appear in bookstores - such as this one in Harvard's bookstore - offering print-on-demand titles from a vast database. But the machine isn't enough - you also need to help people understand how and why they should use it, such as making short story-compilations for the beach or for flights. (credit:Flickr: jenny8lee)
Encourage local self publishing(23 of27)
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It's one thing to have a printer, but with great expertise in reading and local affairs, why not help local writers self publish, and then sell their books in a section of the store? McNally Jackson in New York offers a range of self-publishing services to its clientele, who then get the added thrill of printing off and selling copies in their favorite local bookstore. (credit:McNally Jackson / Yvonne Brooks)
Invite guest community curators(24 of27)
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Having art on the walls is one thing, as Fantagraphics does extremely effectively, but why not invite local guest curators from your community to fill a corner of your store with different objects, books from the store, artwork and personal possessions to tell a story they think is important? Each time, they'll bring in friends and family, expanding your audience and adding something new to the local atmosphere. (credit:Flickr: daniel spils)
Team up with other local brands(25 of27)
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For a local bookstore to thrive, it needs to be an essential part of the community - and that includes the community of vendors as well as consumers. So why not team up with local brewers, like The Spotty Dog in Hudson, NY? You could offer poetry for their beer labels, introduce literary-themed screenings at the local arthouse cinema, donate books to your local coffee shop's reading corner... and encourage them to come into the store and recommend books as well. (credit:Flickr: Bernt Rostad)
Make your staff a feature of the store(26 of27)
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Staff recommendations - like this nicely designed example from Politics & Prose - are great, but why stop there? Why not let each staff member make a small booklet of their top books, or include special "Jane recommended this. Here's others she thinks you might like" bookmarks inside certain purchases? Knowledgeable and friendly bookstore employees are one of the key benefits of real-world bookstores. Use them wisely.
Sell Online(27 of27)
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Amazon isn't the only company who can sell online. The website IndieBound can help you find books sold digitally in a way that your local indie bookstore will get a cut from the sale; they also have their own iOS reading app. And why not offer value Amazon can't? Signed copies, extra presents, surprise packages, reading guides... enhance the reading experience and customers will love you for it. (credit:Shutterstock)
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