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<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><b><span style="font-size:14pt;font-family:Arial">PRESS RELEASE</span></b></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><b><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">A new 4-year research programme on
E-books in Sweden<br>
<br>
</span></b></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">Project title: The case of the e-book in a "small
language" culture: Media, technology and effects in the digital society.</span></p>
<h1 style="margin:0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;background-color:white"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-weight:normal">Commonly developed by the University of Gothenburg (</span><span style="font-size:12pt;font-weight:normal">Department
of Journalism, Media and Communication) and the University of Borås (Swedish
School of Library and Information Science). Financed by the Swedish Research
Council under the Framework grant Digitized society: past, present and future.</span></h1>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">An investigation is proposed into the impact, actual
and potential, of the electronic book (e-book) on the authoring, publishing,
distribution and use process in Sweden. The proposed study is timely, given the
recent increase in the publication, use and library loans of e-books. The
situation in Sweden with regard to the successful introduction of e-books into
the national ‘book culture’ is complicated by a number of factors. It is a
so-called ‘small language’ market, but with a technologically literate
population, many of whom also read English. One of the consequences of the ‘small
language’ phenomenon is that the Swedish book industry is prey to the effects
of globalization, since books have an international market. Thus, the spread of
a Swedish e-book may have to rely on somewhat other factors than in the
English-speaking world. The theoretical framework includes a focus on: the
emergence of the innovation out of previous prototypes, the existence of a ‘supervening
social necessity’, and the impact of means for the suppression of ‘radical
potential’ (Winston). In addition Bourdieu’s field theory will be used to
analyzing changes in power between the actors in the field. </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">The research methods include personal interviews with
authors, publishing executives and booksellers, focus group interviews with
librarians and readers and questions in national surveys of the population. All
data collection will be performed within the Swedish Research Council’s ethical
guidelines.</span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">Researchers in the project: Docent Annika Bergström,
Prof. Lars Höglund, Docent Mathias Klang, Prof. Elena Maceviciute, Skans Kersti
Nilsson, PhD, Prof. Tom Wilson.<br>
<br>
</span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">Contact persons: Prof. Lars Höglund (Gothenburg) </span><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'"><a href="mailto:lars.hoglund@jmg.gu.se"><span style="font-family:Calibri">lars.hoglund@jmg.gu.se</span></a></span><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">, Prof. Elena Maceviciute (Borås) </span><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'"><a href="mailto:elena.maceviciute@hb.se"><span style="font-family:Calibri">elena.maceviciute@hb.se</span></a> (or, in UK – Prof. Tom Wilson <a href="mailto:wilsontd@gmail.com">wilsontd@gmail.com</a>)
</span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'"> </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">Project address: </span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">Prof. Lars Höglund, Institute for Journalism, Media
and Communication</span></p>
<p class="" style="margin-bottom:0.0001pt"><span style="font-size:12pt;font-family:'Times New Roman'">Gothenburg University Box 710. 405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden</span></p>
<div><br></div>-- <br><div>----------------------------------------------------------------------------</div>Professor T.D. Wilson, PhD, PhD (h.c.)<div>Publisher and Editor in Chief: Information Research</div><div><a href="http://informationr.net/ir/" target="_blank">http://informationr.net/ir/</a></div>
<div>E-mail: <a href="mailto:wilsontd@gmail.com" target="_blank">wilsontd@gmail.com</a></div><div>-----------------------------------------------------------------------------</div><div><br></div>
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