[Asia Economy Reporter Donghyun Choi] The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism announced that, together with the Korea Publication Industry Promotion Agency, it will officially launch the Integrated Publishing Distribution Network on the 29th.
The integrated network is a system developed to consolidate information on book production, distribution, and sales, which had been dispersed among publishers, distributors, and bookstores, allowing each entity to utilize the necessary information.
Until now, detailed book information, a core element of book distribution, was not standardized, and the publishing distribution systems were divided by distribution channels, resulting in highly inefficient sharing of publishing distribution information. Publishers sent non-standardized book information via email to bookstores and the media to promote new books, and individual bookstores redundantly entered unstandardized detailed book information into websites for book sales.
To improve this, the government has been developing related systems since 2018 to establish a systematic and efficient publishing distribution structure. Through the public-private cooperation body, the "Publishing Distribution Informatization Committee," which includes publishing and distribution sectors, discussions with the industry were held to complete the integrated network.
Now, when publishers input standardized detailed information of published books into the integrated network, this information is shared with distributors and bookstores linked to the network, enabling them to obtain standardized information about published books more quickly and accurately.
In particular, bookstores' Supply Chain Management (SCM) systems are connected to the integrated network, so sales information for each book is automatically transmitted to the network. Publishers can manage sales information from multiple bookstores at once through the integrated network without separately checking with each bookstore.
Additionally, publishers can use the entered detailed book information to automatically generate press releases or digital book guides, which can be provided to various promotional channels such as journalists, readers, and librarians. Through the publication price processing system to be integrated within this year, publishers will also be able to manage changes to book list prices. Starting from 2022, an online ordering and delivery service will be provided through the integrated network to facilitate book orders between publishers, distributors, and bookstores.
Consumers can also receive information on upcoming books in their areas of interest or utilize publishing industry statistics such as sales status by subject classification through the official website of the integrated network.
Currently, about 1,700 member companies have joined the integrated network, with detailed book information registered for approximately 31,400 titles. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Publication Industry Promotion Agency plan to actively promote the system after the official launch to encourage more companies to join and input detailed book information. Currently, Kyobo Book Centre, Aladin, Youngpoong Bookstore, Yes24, and about 330 local bookstores are linked to the integrated network, and plans are underway to further expand connections with distributors and bookstores through ongoing consultations.
A Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism official stated, "The integrated network will contribute not only to the modernization and rationalization of publishing distribution but also to data-driven publishing planning and marketing," adding, "Considering that it took time for networks in other fields to establish themselves, it is necessary to pursue expansion and stabilization of the project with a long-term perspective."
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
