For ages, books have provided a wealth of information. In 1440, the invention of the Gutenberg printing press revolutionized the book printing world by producing relatively inexpensive books on paper, as opposed to parchment. This infamous idea sparked an information age where persons other than clergy could afford and/or gain access to printed books. While several advancements in printing books have occurred over the years, in 1971, Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, used a Xerox Sigma V mainframe computer to create the first digitized, electronic book (herein an example of an “eBook”). Using the mainframe computer, he typed (i.e., digitized) a copy of the Declaration of Independence. Hart believed that computers would one day become accessible to the public and decided to make literary works available in electronic form.
With the creation of the internet, various eBooks started to gain steam. Initially, eBooks were generally written for specific technical areas. For instance, the subject matter may have ranged from technical manuals to manufacturing techniques. These eBooks were meant for a small, specific audience and were few and far between. Circa 2001, major publishing companies took notice of the eBook trend. Consequently, electronics hardware manufacturers began to develop eBook readers (herein individually also referred to as an “eReader”) in hopes of capitalizing on the eBook phenomenon. In keeping with this emerging trend, publishers launched online stores and partnered with eReader manufacturers to further establish themselves in the eBook marketplace.
Due to the global impact of eBooks, publishers are seeking a revenue balance between the print world and the digital world. Presently, print revenue generally holds steady or decreases while digital revenue steadily increases. However, publishers are currently viewing digital revenue and print revenue as competing, not complementing, revenue streams. Consequently, the significant benefit of increasing overall revenue occurs when print revenue and digital revenue are complementary. Therefore, a publisher may want to continue profiting from print revenue while increasing digital revenue. For example, a user may have a print version of a book but may not know if it is the most current version. On the other hand, a user may know it is the most current year for the print book but may not know if a supplement exists. For instance, in legal books, supplements are added to the current year print book to update certain sections but are manually inserted into the print book. Additionally, a user may want an electronic version of the most recent print version. Various publishers, including THOMSON REUTERS®, provide digital versions of print books and/or supplements. A publisher that has the ability to present a print book's currentness while providing options to view the most current version and/or supplement, including electronic and/or online versions, could greatly complement the print revenue and the digital revenue.