Firstly, we should mention the expansion of print on demand (POD). Most Latin American capitals now have POD terminals, of varying sizes, depending on the dimensions of each market. Print on demand has gradually begun to displace the traditional Offset system, in a context of decreasing average print runs. The survey carried out by CERLALC in 2009 revealed that 20% of the publishers interviewed used POD, while in the following poll the figure had risen to 32%; moreover, 8% of the professionals consulted declared that they were producing 50% of their books in the on-demand modality.[1]
Although the technology available in most of Latin America is not of the same level as that used in the US, POD nevertheless proves to be more competitive for print runs of up to 300 copies. This reality, in addition to the fact that various on-demand printing houses offer services for distributing books through the Internet, has led numerous publishers to adopt a policy of stock reduction. The main POD companies in Latin America include Bandeirantes and Singular (Brazil), Bibliografika, Docuprint and Dorrego (Argentina) and Publidisa (Mexico).[2]
- Cf. Percepción sobre el clima empresarial editorial y tendencias a corto plazo – Boletín 9, CERLALC, October 2010, p. 8.↵
- Publidisa, Publicaciones Digitales S.A., is a Spanish company founded in the year 2000, and a pioneer in the market for electronic books and print on demand. In 2005, it joined forces with Bibliografika of Argentina and also opened a plant in Mexico.↵
Ernesto Martínez
/ 17/06/2011El POD tiene mucha potencialidad para las librerías. Especialmente en un continente tan vasto como el latinoamericano. Creo que es importante que esto se incorpore en cualquier modelo de negocio digital tanto de librerías como de editoriales.
La reducción en precios y el potencial incremento en ventas que una solución POD tiene para los libros importados, puede incidir en la mejora de los índices de lectura de nuestros países.
thierry quinqueton
/ 27/08/2011C’est impressionnant ces chiffres repris de l’étude du CERLALC:
- près du tiers des éditeurs qui ont recours à la technique du print on demand;
- pres d’un éditeur sur dix qui produisent plus de la moitié de leurs livres en print on demand.
C’est une technique qui boulverse l’économie du livre de niveau universitaire avec ses quelques dizaines d’exemplaires vendus par an et le cout que représentait le stockage des 1500 ou 2000 exemplaires du tirage initial.