Cross-industry initiative moving forward in partnership with Portland State University
The Panorama Project, in partnership with Portland State University, has convened a cross-industry Consumer Research Committee to spearhead its “Immersive Media & Reading 2020” consumer survey to measure immersive media consumption and buying behaviors across key formats and platforms. The committee will be chaired by Dr. Rachel Noorda, Director of Publishing at Portland State University, and includes representatives from the American Library Association (ALA), Authors Guild, Book Industry Study Group (BISG), Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA), and PubWest.
Dr. Kathi Inman Berens, Assistant Professor of English and Book Publishing, PSU
Angela Bole, Chief Executive Officer, IBPA
Alan Inouye, Senior Director, Public Policy & Government Relations, ALA
Brian F. O'Leary, Executive Director, BISG
Mary Rasenberger, Executive Director, The Authors Guild
Kent Watson, Executive Director, PubWest
“One of our primary goals with this initiative is to establish a foundation for cross-industry collaboration that can produce useful and transparent data that can be widely shared and analyzed,” explained Panorama Project lead and committee secretary, Guy LeCharles Gonzalez. “Our primary goal is, first and foremost, to situate books in a broader media context. How do people who read books discover, consume, and pay for other, similarly immersive media types?”
The primary goal of the “Immersive Media & Reading 2020” consumer survey is to establish books’ place in the larger media ecosystem by understanding how readers discovered, accessed, and consumed the books they’ve read most recently; and how purchasing or borrowing decisions are impacted by their consumption of other immersive media, specifically film, TV, and games. The final scope and additional goals will be determined by the Consumer Research Committee.
The committee held its kickoff meeting on April 8, 2020 to begin refining the survey’s scope and goals, targeting June for a final draft which will then be submitted to Portland State University’s (PSU) ethics approval process which will ensure the rights and safety of human subjects recruited for participation in the survey. The procedures of this ethics approval process at PSU are guided by the ethical principles of The Belmont Report and comply with the U.S. Department of Human Services. This process is one more measure to ensure objective survey questions, sound data-gathering practices, and appropriate methodology for addressing the objectives of the “Immersive Media & Reading 2020” consumer survey.
“There is a lack of publicly available data about the book industry, which is why the Immersive Media & Reading 2020 project is so important,” says committee chair, Dr. Rachel Noorda. “The committee members represent the interests of a variety of different groups within the industry: authors, publishers (of various sizes), libraries, and booksellers. This variety aids in developing objectives and survey questions that speak to all segments of the industry and are not biased toward one or another.”
“When we were recruiting for committee participation,” Gonzalez explained, “we wanted to ensure a variety of perspectives were represented which is why we targeted industry organizations rather than individual stakeholders. This committee will work together over the next several weeks to guide the development of the survey, ensuring consensus on its methodology and scope, and relevance to key constituencies, while bolstering the credibility and usefulness of its eventual findings.”
In recognition of the ongoing public health crisis that has disrupted the entire publishing ecosystem, the deployment date of the survey and subsequent analysis of the results will be revised. The committee is also considering how to address its impact on the focus of the survey itself.
“There’s no question the pandemic and social distancing guidelines that have seen local bookstores, libraries, and schools close their doors across the country are having an impact on book discovery and sales, and that will also impact the framing and timing of the survey itself,” Gonzalez said. “We’re discussing it within the context of the survey’s overall mission, and I have full confidence in the committee’s ability to determine how to best address it for the benefit of the overall industry.”
For more information on the Panorama Project’s 2020 initiatives, and an overview of 2019, download the full 2019 annual report here: panoramaproject.org/annual-report-2019