Time to embrace digital change: the media sector sends out a wake-up call - Main contents

Europe has wonderful media and creative industries. Of the top 10 publishing groups in the world by turnover, 7 are European. Add that to world-class news agencies, film-makers who made (among other things) the last two Oscar-winners, great TV shows that export round the world, globally bestselling albums - you name it, we are leading the world in many of these areas.

But the future is digital: people are increasingly going online for this kind of content — and the sector needs to respond to stay in the global game. So the question is - will they embrace that change, or will they carry on as they are and hope the change goes away?

The last couple of days have brought me some hope about the answer. Hope that the sector recognises digital change is here to stay, are willing to take up the challenge and want to lead the way forward.

Back in December, I set up the Media Futures Forum, to look - among other things - at trends in the media industry, and their impacts on business models, competition, pluralism and content creation. I’m delighted they’ve now submitted their detailed ideas for how to “Fast Forward Europe“. It’s a varied group with many different experiences, from “traditional” media organisations to social media to device makers.

But in spite of those different perspectives, there’s much that they agree on - that our current approach isn’t working, that we need to do things differently, and that we need to start urging that change on industry and policy makers alike. That’s essential to growth, job creation, and media pluralism.

The executive summary is well worth a read, covering issues from fast broadband, to easier online payments, to geo-blocking: I will certainly be studying it carefully.

And here’s one sector where we’ve started making that change already: eBooks.

You are probably aware of the advantages of eBooks - whether it’s lighter luggage for your holiday reading, or instant access to the day’s news. Yet you may have also noted some things that make eBooks more frustrating than they should be.

First: why is it so difficult to buy an eBook from another EU country? We are used to easily buying printed books online from shops abroad. But not for eBooks: one illustration of how the single market isn’t yet properly digital.

It’s hard to see why. Not for logistical reasons: there’s no shipping or distribution required. Nor for legal or copyright reasons: as, unlike for music, licenses for books are in principle global. Nor any technological problem.

In fact, all that’s missing is the right mindset and business model in the industry. And I find that deeply frustrating, both as a policymaker and as a reader. Because the result is that there aren’t as many eBook offers as there should be in Europe - at least not legally. So our digital single market is missing out, readers are missing out, and the industry is missing a trick.

Second, once I’ve bought an eBook, why can’t I access it on any device I wish? I can sell or lend my printed books as I wish, but not with eBooks, as copyright owners still control the eBook files after you buy them. That prevents people making unlimited copies without further payment; but also makes it harder to transfer between devices - damaging competition and making your life harder than it should be.

And third, often paper books benefit from a lower VAT rate; eBooks don’t. But why should there be that tax discrimination against a digital version of the same thing?

Overall, my vision is to end these discriminations, and have eBooks available in Europe anywhere, any time on any device.

To sort out these issues, we need to work with the industry. So yesterday I met lots of those active in the eBook market: authors, publishers, retailers, device manufacturers and libraries, together in an “eBook roundtable”. We discussed all these issues and more. And I was delighted that those participants are to sign a joint declaration to achieve these goals. In particular, they endorsed the principle that there should be “no barriers for consumers to acquire eBooks across territorial borders, platforms and devices”.

Digital realities mean we need to change. I know that isn’t always easy. But overall I’m an optimist. I know that there’s so much commitment in the media and publishing sector to support cultural heritage, freedom of expression and economic competitiveness: and enough talent and dynamism to recognise and seize digital opportunities to do that.

It’s great that those within the sector are getting together to effect this change together. And for my part I’m going to help them by removing obstacles as best I can: so that the industry can really start to “think European”, and get the economies of scale for global success.

Twitter hashtags: #EUMFF12 #eBooks