Future of Printed Books in the Digital Age
Name
Institution
Date of submission

Once upon a time printed books were the undisputed medium of expressing literary culture, as well as source of information and knowledge. Books were a central part of the society acting as a vehicle for carrying and disseminating histories, ideas, stories, and pictures. However, over the centuries, the literary culture of reading and relying on printed books as the primary source of information has gradually changed. The digital age is populated with technology, which has revolutionized all aspects of lifestyle. Thompson (2005) notes that one of these aspects is the culture of reading printed material from books and other sources. In this digital age, information is readily available on the internet merely by a click of a button. This is not only convenient, but also consume less time as opposed to the earlier eras where one would take time and go to the library, search for a book, and finally read to get the required information. As a result, books are becoming less and less desirable as their future is overtaken by the digital sources of information.
Today, e-books have replaced the printed version of books particularly with the invention and popularity of tablets and iPads that are perfect carriers of e-books. E-books are on the rise as the sales of printed books decrease, and soon they will completely replace the printed versions. For instance, in 2003, the sales of printed books decreased by 10% while that of e-books flourished up to 20% (Flood, 2014). Books and other printed sources were at the top with regard to sales a few centuries ago, but currently, they rank fourth behind television, cinema, and video games. This reveals how the technological advances influence people to adopt the digital based trends and neglect the traditional trends like reading printed books.
Universities and colleges are investing in IT and latest technology instead of expansion of libraries and acquisition of printed sources. Consequently, they acquire the sources in e-format in accordance with the requirements of the digital era. The availability and accessibility of e-books or sources in e-formats in both public and institutional libraries discourage people from seeking printed books, a habit that will eventually face out printed books (Gomez, 2009). Moreover, other factors that discourage readers from printed sources are that they require high investments that many readers cannot afford, and the libraries use obsolete methods of operations that discourage the readers from visiting libraries. Additionally, the increasing activism on environmental conservation in this digital age also poses a significant threat to the future existence of printed books (Flood, 2014). This is because people prefer e-books for their environmentally friendly nature than printed books that contribute to environmental degradation due to cutting of tree to make papers.
Undeniably, the digital age is slowly facing out printed books, which threatens their future existence. People prefer to get information from the internet because it is readily available, and thus, saves time, and also cheaper than acquiring a printed source. Further, the emergence of technological advancements, as well as popularity of e-books is slowly facing out the printed sources. Colleges, universities, and even public libraries are acquiring e-formats as opposed to the printed formats to keep up with the trends of the digital age. This contributes immensely towards e-books replacing printed books. Data shows that the sales for printed books has decreased over the years while that of e-books is gradually increasing showing a shift in the culture of acquiring and reading printed books. Hence, there is less chance that printed books have a place in the future.

References
Flood, A. (2014, June 13). Self-Publishing Boom Lifts Sales By 79% In A Year’. The Guardian.
Gomez, J. (2009). Print Is Dead: Books in Our Digital Age . Palgrave Macmillan.
Thompson, J. (2005). Books In The Digital Age page. Sage Publications.