There is a real need to be able to demonstrate value-added in an online environment as the medium is regarded as the world's largest free library. Enabling the user to specify the content required, what for etc., and then delivering back precisely what is required, appropriately summarized, gives the user a personalized service. One that can be billed for and one that the generalized search engines on the web are not designed to do. E-commerce for publishers works back, or sideways through the supply chain, as well as out to the user and consumer. In terms of relationships with the printers, one can simply substitute the publisher as the corporate buyer in the model described above for printers' relationships with customers.
Material is supplied electronically and paid for by e-commerce.
And, Pira's Publishing and New Media Group is active in assisting publishers develop business strategies to take advantage of emerging web-enabled technologies. Very much so.