With 2013
just a few days away, here are more predictions for the new year:
The Harvard Business Review blog says 2013
will be all about the “Content Economy.” Content—essentially data and
intellectual and creative properties in all forms—will become the most valuable
asset any organization possesses. It’s not much of a stretch to claim mobile
will be big next year, but HBR adds
that web, social media, and mobile will all become “co-dependent,” meaning that
people will expect anything they can access on the web or through a social
network to be optimized for mobile devices, or what HBR calls “smobile.”
Mobile,
integrated commerce (a blend of online and offline), and the growing importance
of social media will also be the three top trends for retailers, in the view of
Forbes blogger Lydia Dishman.
In “TenBold Predictions for Ebooks and Digital Publishing in 2013,” Digital Book World
anticipates continuing consolidation among publishers. Those that remain in
business will sell more directly to consumers, bypassing booksellers, both
physical and online. Dedicated e-readers will plunge in price, maybe all the
way to zero, yet publishers will boost promotions of e-books and add more
extras to digital titles.
Like DBW,
the TeleRead blog expects to see a variety of enhancements for e-books, reading
apps, and mobile-device interfaces. But, as a result, consumers will pay higher
prices for e-books, most likely price points similar to softcover print books.
The CITE’s
own forecast: Some of these predictions will be right on the money; others will
miss by a mile. And something that nobody expected will emerge as a
game-changer.
What do you
think will happen in 2013? Add your predictions to the conversation.
