Autumn 2009, London UK:
I am Dominic Jacquesson.
Ink On Dead Trees is my attempt to track and predict the future of media, and especially what used to be called ‘publishing’. This follows 12 years of my professional life spent immersed in the publishing world, which has coincided with the birth and proliferation of the internet and world wide web. The digitisation of media has of course been the driving force of change over this period. We have witnessed profound shifts in media consumption and participation. But there are still several years, and several innovations, to go before this process has run its course. Magazines, textbooks, even newspapers, are still dominant in their ‘ink on dead tree’ formats. We all know that this will change, and that paper will eventually become a heritage item. But it is not clear when this transition will actually play itself out, nor what business models will emerge to support what media products consumed on what technology platforms and devices? What I do know is that we’ll see major shifts in all three of these areas. I also believe that these shifts will have major implications for our society – all the way from simply how we spend our time through to the future of democracy. Whilst I don’t believe that anybody can accurately predict the future, I do firmly believe that you’re more likely to be on the right track if you carefully analyse trends and innovations, whilst keeping your feet firmly on the ground and not losing sight of the constraints of economics and human nature. And of course, business and political leaders who make the correct predictions stand to gain handsomely.
I have written articles, spoken at conferences, and also undertake consultancy assignments in the areas of digital publishing & marketing, eReaders, and successfully building media businesses.
You can follow me on Twitter @domjacquesson
My full professional profile can be viewed at http://www.linkedin.com/in/dominicjacquesson