When I talk to lots of printers, it’s clear they’re not just in the industry for the nine to five – they’re printing fanatics. Obviously many printers identify with the industry in a way that goes beyond merely earning a crust.

Indeed, print’s current position as something of a technological underdog compared with sexy, shiny counterparts in the new media world, such as Apple and Google, acts as a spur to many. There’s a fighting spirit, as the industry gets inspired to step up its endorsement of the medium. The more some commentators declare that print is dying, the more vehemently many in the industry trumpet
its ongoing relevance.

Which is why Apple’s recent launch of its tablet computer and e-reader, the iPad, was always going to see journalists once again drafting obituaries for print. And as always, this would be followed by a barrage of counterclaims that print would either see off the challenge of the upstart medium, or at least find a way to live alongside it.

Tech fanaticism
We’ve got an Apple fanatic here in ProPrint towers. He spent the days leading up to the iPad launch loudly declaring to anyone who would listen that the device would change the face of publishing forever.

That’s a lot of hype. Was the iPad ever going to be able to live up to such
a billing? It did get a healthy amount of press, most of it fairly positive, regarding its potential to make e-readers as cool and as common as iPads and iPhones.

I spoke to a number of printers and industry commentators in the days following the launch. I also spoke with Robert Wong, the chief executive of an online catalogue company, who saw the significance of the launch in very clear terms. “It’s directly competing with print,” he reckons.

Wong’s claim might not sound that revolutionary to those outside the print bubble. But it made quite a change from the scores of printers who have assured me over the past few months that they are not at all worried by the trend towards e-readers. “It’s not really a competitor to print”. “What’s all the fuss about?” Etc etc.

Next evolution
Regular readers of this column will know that I can be a bit of a Gen Y cynic when it comes to print’s future. It’s hard to deny the unrelenting power of progress. The way I see it, the iPad and its cousins in the smartphone and e-reader space are simply the next evolution. And I do think that the rise of new media puts pressure on the old. There are those who will tell you that as print advertising revenues fall and online advertising revenues rise, the trends are unrelated. Not true – what we are witnessing now is the worlds of print and online jostling for position.

For me, there can be no disputing that the iPad and e-readers are essentially mobile content delivery platforms, just like print. So in some areas, the two will be in direct competition.

The ‘death of print’ may not be upon us, but there’s little point in denying (or worse, ignoring) the threat of the technologies like the iPad. You have to know your enemy to win the battle.

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