The next trend identified by the author23 was the implementation of an aggregation reference collection rather than a library of single works that can be searched as a single database. Books related to information technology are the most frequently found example of aggregations for computer and information technology references. Institutional customers such as libraries and corporations make up the third trend as opposed to individual customers for e‐books. These types of customers are attractive to sellers as they get access to large purchasers, to the users who are provided access to large collections, and to libraries that can provide a service needed and desired by their customers.
All of the foregoing definitions of e‐books have been oriented toward a format that presents the content of a hardcopy printed book in electronic form. There are several additional definitions often associated with e‐books that go beyond the simple creation of electronic version of a printed book. A number of authors have identified the use of Web‐based books as a format with search and linking capabilities24. Another format used by a number of publishers of e‐books is the use of CD‐Rom format where search and linking capabilities within the electronic text are often found25. There have also been a number of initiatives to deliver the accessibility of e‐books by means of dedicated electronic devices or readers. The market for these electronic devices boomed this year (2010) when big companies such as Amazon (Kindle) and Apple (Ipad) decided to add their latest gadgets to the market.
E‐book usage
The focus of this study is to examine the acceptance of e‐books focused on leisure by the
23 O’Leary, M. (2003, September/ October). E‐book scenarios updated. Retrieved August 8, 2006, from http://www.infotoday.com/online/sep03/oleary.shtml
24 Brisco, S. (2006, December). Ebooks are getting ready to go to school. School Library Journal, 52(12), 82 – 83.;
Chen, Y. (2003). Application and development of electronic books in an e‐Gutenberg age. Online Information Review, 27(1), 8‐16
25Clyde, L.A. (2005, June). Electronic books. Teacher Librarian, 32(5), 45 ‐47.
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general public of Taiwan. The literature indicated there are a variety of audiences that have become the main users of e‐books. Taiwan is an extremely diverse and interesting market for the leisure market segment of e‐books. Even though the focus has been on the research and academic market of e‐books for a couple of years, it is interesting to note that big companies like Amazon.com and Apple, Inc. have broaden their product scope with a specific focus on the leisure market segment of e‐books.
A number of positive aspects of technology as applied to electronic books have been examined in the past26. One of the aspects of this study concluded that younger people who are
comfortable with technology are more likely to be receptive of e‐books than are older citizens who would be required to change their reading habits. The availability of e‐books continues to grow and become increasingly available for the public in general. Studies continue to emerge that indicate the usage of e‐books is expected to grow, not only amongst students, but amongst further generations. Although there are numerous articles and works of research that
illustrated the potentially positive outlook for the growing usage and acceptance of e‐books, there have been a number of studies that identified remaining deficiencies with e‐books and instances of resistance to the widespread use of e‐books.
Despite significant advances in e‐book devices and the software capabilities to allow readers to access electronic materials, the paper‐based publishing industry is concerned about piracy of their digital content. Furthermore, the technical advances and acceptance of e‐books by the reading public, the digital rights management restrictions established by publishers have adversely affected the availability of electronic content to consumers27.
The issues related to the acceptance of electronic book materials (with a focus on academics
26Agee, J. (2003, July/ August). Exciting e‐books: A new path to literature. Techtrends, 47(4), 5‐8.
27Burke, R. (2001). E‐book devices and the marketplace: In search of customers. Library Hi Tech, 19(4), 325 – 331.
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once again) has been done in the past28. A specific study by Mercieca compared a number of different digital formats to determine if there is a preferred format for reading textbook materials on a computer screen. The format of e‐books has always been a big issue and has been researched countless times, but given the technological age we find ourselves in, format is not the main issue anymore. The main issue is whether the public in general are ready for a technological reading revolution. This thesis examines just that.
The capabilities available with e‐books that can meet the accommodation requirements of handicapped readers have also been explored29. There are available technologies in the form of variable print size, text‐to‐speech‐, and interactions that support a variety of student learning needs and can be a significant advantage over printed text. Even though this focus is yet again on the academic side of things, big companies have explored the same idea and came up with the concept of audio‐books.
An ‘audio‐book’ is a recording that is primarily spoken word
The advantages as well as disadvantages of the e‐book market place have been covered by this thesis. Furthermore the market potential has been analyzed. Moreover the perceived public acceptance of the leisure market segment of e‐books has always been the criteria throughout the analysis of this thesis.
Although there are several resources reviewed that express some reservations regarding e‐
book acceptance30, there has been positive advances in the usage of e‐books in a number of
28 Mercieca, P. (2003, April, 22). E‐book acceptance: What will make users read on screen? Retrieved December, 3, 2006, from http://www.iof.org
29 Cavanaugh, T. (2002, November/ December). eBooks and accommodations. Teaching Exceptional Children, 35(2), 56 – 61.
30Blumenstryk, G. (2001, May 18). Publishers promote e‐textbooks, but many students and professors are skeptical. Chronicle of Higher Education, 47(36), A35‐A38
Burk, R. (2001). E‐book devices and the marketplace: In search of customers. Library Hi Tech, 19(4), 325 – 331.
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settings. Some of the resources that indicated there were growing usage and acceptance of e‐
books included a couple of studies by a couple of authors31.
Technology acceptance model (TAM)
The technology acceptance model was developed by Davis in 1989 at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The use of TAM in a 2‐year study found a relationship did exist between the attitude toward accepting technology and consumer satisfaction. In addition to numerous studies using the basic TAM, there have been a number of studies that have extended the TAM.
In terms of TAM usage, the TAM has been used in a number of studies related to the acceptance of different technologies in a variety of settings. Some authors used the TAM to determine end user acceptance of new technology in a bank treasury. The findings of the study suggested that demographic variables such as age, position in the company, and the length of employment provided significant contributions to satisfaction leading to end‐user usage of new technology. This serves as a further basis of the extension of the TAM used in this specific study:
the unique combination of perceived usefulness, relative advantage, perceived ease of use and social factors as independent variables together with the dependent variables usage and behavioral intention results in significant conclusions. The following moderators: age, gender and nationality also contribute to the validity of the study.
Another application of the TAM examined individual differences consisting of self‐efficacy and knowledge of search domains as well as systems characteristics relative to the intention to use digital databases. The results of this study indicated that the TAM was successfully applied to determining the intention to use digital databases on usefulness and ease of use.
Carlson, S. (2005, February 11). Online textbooks fail to make the grade. Chronicle of Higher Education, 51(23), A35‐A36.
31 Agee, J. (2003, July/ August). Exciting e‐books: A new path to literature. Techtrends, 47(4), 5‐8.