Ben Stroup

I recently discovered Spotify, and I love it! Here’s why:

• It’s cloud-based.
• It’s platform independent.
• It makes it easy to share music.
• I can customize my experience.

It occurred to me that book publishers could learn a few things from Spotify, too. No one knows just exactly what digital publishing will ultimately do to traditional publishing. If we look to the music industry as an example, we can expect the coming changes to be nothing less than revolutionary.

Spotify gets what traditional publishers don’t:

• I want access, not ownership. I have given away most of my printed books. I don’t see myself ever amassing more books than can fit on a small bookshelf. I want to know I can get what I want when I want or need it wherever I’m at.
• I want to be able to consume content on multiple devices in a variety of ways. I want to start reading on my laptop at work, continue on my tablet at lunch, and then finish on my phone while standing in line at the grocery store. Further, I may want to read the book and watch a video of the author unpacking each chapter.
• I want to easily share what inspires me with my friends…immediately. Social networking keeps me connected. I want to share the content I like with others.
• I want to customize my experience. Think “Google search meets the Card Catalogue.” I no longer need to know the author or the title. What a way to discover new voices, not just the ones who get all the traditional publicity attention.

What if for a flat fee I could get whatever content I was looking for in whatever form I preferred? What if the experience became more important than the production process?

It’s coming. Traditional publishers will resist or adapt.

Ben Stroup is a content activist in a post-paragraph world. He is chief broker of opportunity at Ben Stroup Enterprises. Connect with Ben via email, Twitter, and Google+. Subscribe via email to learn how to use content to move people to action.