“After 244 years reference book firm Encyclopaedia Britannica has decided to stop publishing its famous and weighty 32-volume print edition,” BBC News reports.
“It will now focus on digital expansion amid rising competition from websites such as Wikipedia,” The Beeb reports. “The firm, which used to sell its encyclopaedias door-to-door, now generates almost 85% its revenue from online sales.”
The Beeb reports, “It recently launched a digital version of its encyclopaedias for tablet PCs.”
MacDailyNews Take: By which, obviously, The Beeb means “iPads.” That they and other media outlets insist on pretending that there is meaningful market for “tablet PCs” is laughable.
“Britannica said while its decision to focus on online editions was influenced by the shift in consumer pattern, the ability to update content at a short notice also played a big role,” The Beeb reports. ‘A printed encyclopaedia is obsolete the minute that you print it,’ Mr Cauz said. ‘Whereas our online edition is updated continuously.'”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: The end of an era (that we thought had already ended years ago).
[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “David G.” for the heads up.]