The Role of Prosumer in Reshaping the Publishing Industry: Preliminary Findings from the Möbius Project

As reported by the Federation of European Publishers [2] “Book publishing is the
largest cultural industry in Europe, and European publishing (uniquely among Euro-
pean cultural industries) is a world leader”. The sector can count on €36–40 billion
in market value, €22–24 billion turnover per year, and from 600.000 to 700.000 jobs.
However, digital transformation is imposing massive changes. To keep the position,
the European publishing industry must dominate the transformation. In line with
this, the aim of the research conducted in the Möbius project, funded by the Euro-
pean Commission, is twofold. On the one hand, to gather knowledge on existing
practices considering challenges and opportunities for the sector. On the other hand,
to deliver, at the end of the funding, (i) technical solutions that could foster the state
of the art of the sector and (ii) theoretical contribution, in terms of new business
model, to reshape current models for revenue. In line with this, it is crucial to under-
stand the power of the so-called prosumers and empower them into the value chain
delivering user-centric and user-driven perspectives in the design and delivery of
enriched media experiences for books. Given the importance and centrality of the
publishing industry for other creative and cultural sectors as well (e.g., audiovisual,
music, architecture, etc.), the expectation is that research findings will inform future
European policy strategies for the cultural and creative industry in order to provide
support and funding to the publishing sector.