Navigating the future global publishing trends!

The global publishing industry stands resilient amidst challenges, says Gvantsa Jobava, President of the International Publishers Association (IPA). From safeguarding the freedom to publish and combating piracy to embracing the transformative potential of artificial intelligence and sustainable practices, she outlines the key priorities shaping the industry’s future.

100

Gvantsa Jobava, President of International Publishers Association (IPA) highlights the industry’s dynamic growth, inclusivity efforts, and the pivotal role of international collaboration in addressing emerging global challenges in publishing industry.

AABP: How would you describe the current state of the global publishing industry?

Gvantsa: Despite a number of markets and regions where publishers are finding it tough at the moment (sometimes for political or economic reasons), on a global level publishing is doing well. You just need to visit the international book fairs to see this dynamic industry in action – publishing new works, looking for new ways to reach readers. At the same time we see pressures on the pillars of publishing – the freedom to publish and copyright. The freedom to publish, alongside the freedom of expression and the freedom to read, are facing challenges in many different countries, especially when it comes to books for young people. For copyright, piracy is still an issue in many markets and we are also having to fight to ensure the Generative AI companies are transparent about the works they used and to secure licenses if they want to use copyrighted books.

AABP : What trends or changes do you see shaping the future of publishing in the next five years?

Gvantsa : I think it is clear that artificial intelligence will affect different aspects of publishing in the coming years. Also the arrival of the European Accessibility Act this year, will mean any publishers selling ebooks into Europe will need accessible versions. Many publishers are ready but this will be a boost not just print disabled readers but all readers.

AABP: What will be your key priorities as the President of the IPA?

Gvantsa : As President of the IPA I will of course remain committed to our pillars of promoting copyright and the freedom to publish. The freedom to publish is particularly close to my heart given the current local context in my home country of Georgia, which has shown me what a damaging impact the limitation of any freedoms may have on the publishing industry, how readers may suffer and how important it is for any societyfor the publishers not to obey such actions but to resist instead.

The closing declaration of the 34th International Publishers Congress in Guadalajara in December 2024 also gives me a clear set of objectives for my Presidency.

AABP : The IPA has often championed inclusivity in publishing. What initiatives are currently being undertaken to amplify voices from underrepresented communities?

Gvantsa : Every country has its own challenges in terms of inclusion and diversity. IPA is here to share the best practices from among our members and to promote those initiatives that have made a difference. The PublisHer initiative, led by IPA’s Past President Bodour Al Qasimi is clearly a great example but we also see other initiatives in different member countries whether about gender diversity, or inclusivity in terms of family background, wealth, regions. The more inclusive our industry is, the more inclusive the stories we tell can be.

AABP : How do you see advancements in artificial intelligence and digital publishing transforming the industry?

Gvantsa : Digital publishing has been around for so long now but it continues to evolve and influence the way we publish. I spoke earlier of accessible books being better books for everyone, that is because a really well built digital book has so much flexibility for all types of readers. But digital will also have the potential to improve distribution and reduce carbon impact.

When it comes to artificial intelligence there will be many different uses from production to marketing, as well as probably some level of proofing and editing. But the ground rules for generative Artificial Intelligence need to be understood. Training on copyrighted works requires a license.

AABP : What are the key challenges to freedom to publish today and how do you wish to take it forward?

Gvantsa : The Freedom to Publish is so important for what we do at IPA. Our Prix Voltaire ceremony at the Congress in Guadalajara celebrated Samir Mansour from Palestine as the 2024 IPA Prix Voltaire laureate and he continues to work to bring books to people in Gaza despite the very difficult situation there. We also celebrated Ukrainian author Victoria Amelina who was murdered in a Russian bomb attack in 2023 just weeks after joining us at the Prix Voltaire ceremony in Norway. Our two laureates show that in addition to the challenges I mentioned earlier, we also have publishers struggling to operate in the context of war.

I think my message to publishers everywhere is that the freedom to publish is extremely fragile. It can be eroded and taken away relatively quickly if we aren’t careful.

AABP : How can the publishing sector reduce its environmental impact and what would be your initiatives in this regard?

Gvantsa : Sustainability has to be a concern for all of us and our sector has two important ways of making an impact. The first is through what we publish. Publishing books that help readers understand the issue is already a great thing. But where we need to do more is in how we publish. How do we print? What paper, what inks do we use? What about distribution or packaging? IPA has an SDG Dashboard (sdg.internationalpublishers.org) with lots of different initiatives that publishers and publishers associations are taking to be more sustainable. I encourage all publishers to have a look and tell us about their work.

AABP : What opportunities and challenges do you foresee for Indian publishers in the global arena?

Gvantsa : IPA is always here for all of our members and we are proud that the Federation of Indian Publishers is a long-standing, engaged member of IPA. From my time as Vice President of IPA, when I visited Chennai twice, I have seen that many of the challenges publishers face there are shared in other markets. All of the issues I have mentioned above will be important for Indian publishers – diversity, sustainability, accessibility, freedom to publish, artificial intelligence, piracy, copyright. But it was also great to see the growth of the Indian Publishing industry to become the3rd largest in the print book market and 2nd largest in terms of English language books.

Besides this, while visiting Chennai, I learned about the Tamil people’s brave fight for defending their language and thus their identity. Why is language so important? Because it defines our way of thinking, our character, our identity and the quality of our freedom. And what a wealth it is having such a big variety of languages like India does! But we are aware that the variety of languages makes the translation process of many countries’ literature quite challenging.If I hadn’t traveled to India, I probably wouldn’t have discovered the brilliant book One Part Woman by Tamil author Perumal Murugan which will soon be published in the Georgian language. That is why networking, staying connected is so important for our industry. And it is one of IPA’s important goals – strengthening this network.Through our network of members IPA has the resources to support Indian publishers with any challenges they face.

AABP : How do you envision the IPA evolving to address emerging global issues in publishing?

Gvantsa: What makes IPA so valuable is its membership network. We have an amazing team at the secretariat in Geneva and an Executive Committee drawn from influential publishers from around the world. Ensuring that IPA has the resources to continue to support members is always a priority and through that ensuring that all of our members, whatever their market challenges feel that IPA is there for them. My mission will be to make sure that all IPA members feel the value of the association.

You might also like More from author

Comments are closed.