BISG: the recommendations | Books+Publishing

Friday, 16 March 2012 Books+Publishing

More than a year in the making, the Book Industry Strategy Group report to government has finally been delivered. Here are the main recommendations:

Released publicly in November 2011, the Book Industry Strategy Group (BISG) report to government has made 21 recommendations, one of which appears to be achievable by the industry without any government help: addressing parallel importation restrictions (PIRs). The report recommends ‘that the Australian book industry … formalise an agreed, industry-wide code of practice that will reduce the timeframe for retention of territorial copyright from 30/90 days to 14/14 days without the need to amend existing legislation’.

The BISG said that the local market ‘had been transformed’ since the Productivity Commission’s inquiry into PIR in 2009 as a result of ‘the rapid growth in online offshore retailing’. ‘A reduction in the restrictive period of supply of books will empower Australian booksellers to compete in the global marketplace, while continuing to provide a level of protection for rights holders in the local industry.’

Supply chain
The BISG has recommended that the government ‘establish a Book Industry Collaborative Council with membership from all parts of the book value chain’. While the report said that such a council should not be limited to reforms based on the BISG’s recommendations, it ‘must be guided by a clear priority agenda’, which should include ‘efficiency reforms for the book distribution network within Australia’, ‘maximising export opportunities for Australian book producers’, ‘coordination of industry skills development strategies and implementation’, ‘development of funding models which support Australian literature’, ‘facilitation of research initiatives’, and ‘a body for centralising book industry consultations with government and other bodies’.

More specifically, when it comes to improving the book supply chain, the report recommends that the industry ‘establish a goal of 48 hours turnaround for fulfilling Australian reseller orders’. ‘In seeking to achieve this, the government should support the proposed Book Industry Collaborative Council in its tasks of improving the efficiency of the book distribution network through rationalization, standardization and consolidation, as its key priority over its first three years,’ said the report.

The group also recommends that the government provide $5 million in funding for the enhancement of TitlePage ‘to develop the digital infrastructure required for an efficient, cost-competitive and secure online service to consumers that is comparable in promotion, range and functionally to that of the main offshore retailers’.

GST and postage
To address the ‘GST inequity’ facing booksellers, the BISG recommends the government either ‘take appropriate action to abolish the 10% GST on books purchased in Australia’ or ‘provide greater equity in competition for Australian retailers by applying the 10% GST on books sold by overseas retailers to Australian consumers’.

On postal rates, the BISG recommends that ‘the government initiate negotiations with the Universal Postal Union to secure amendment of the appropriate postal treaties to provide more equitable and competitive pricing for print post delivery, where Australia is currently severely disadvantaged’.

Educational publishing
In academic publishing, the BISG recommends that the government ‘provide financial support to establish a National University Press Network of $10 million over a two-year period, matched by $6 million from the university sector’.

The funds would be used to undertake three related projects: ‘a publication subsidies scheme’, marketing and distribution infrastructure’, and ‘production infrastructure’.

For digital resources in schools, the BISG has recommended that the government ‘reallocate $30 million over three years from the existing Digital Education Revolution funding for the purchase of digital teaching and learning resources administered through a market-based mechanism that directs government spending to the purchase of digital learning materials’.

In higher education, the BISG recommends that the government ‘allocate 10% of the $50 million funding from the Promotion of Excellence in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education program to a grants program that supports the development of quality, innovate teaching and learning resources for the higher education sector’, as well as ‘develop a reward/recognition system which promotes teaching excellence and authoring of quality
educational materials’.

Authors and copyright
For authors, the BISG recommends that the government ‘legislate to make tax exempt all literary prizes, awards and grants that are funded and administered by government’ and ‘implement an income deposits tax measure … to assist with management of fluctuations in artists’/authors’ incomes over time’.

The BISG has also recognised the important role of the Australia Council of the Arts in supporting Australian writers. The group recommends that the government ‘encourage a review of the Australia Council’s Literature Board grants allocation processes and criteria, aiming to provide substantial additional funding directly to authors to a minimum $3.5 million per annum’. Further, the group also recommends the creation of a National Book Council. Its proposed roles would include: ‘provision of additional funds to writers for the creation of new Australian works’, ‘the development of attractive financial investment models with potential return to government and individual investors’, and ‘funding of a multi-year marketing campaign for the promotion of Australian writers both nationally and internationally’.

With reference to copyright, the BISG recommends that ‘issues relating to digital books form part of the Australian Law Reform Commission’s upcoming review of digital copyright’, and that ‘the Australian Law Reform Commission consult directly with the book industry through its author and publishing associations’. The BISG also recommends that the Attorney-General’s Department work ‘with the content and internet industries to ensure adoption of a binding industry code on copyright infringement by internet service providers and their customers in accordance with the legislative framework in order to combat and defeat piracy’. The group also recommends that the government ‘consider facilitating discussions between copyright owners and internet service providers over remuneration for copyrights accessed through the internet service providers’.

Improving the exports business of local publishers is also highlighted in the report, with the BISG recommending that the proposed Book Industry Collaborative Council ‘work with Austrade to improve the support provided to the book industry to enter export markets’.

Funding recommendations
In its recommendations, the BISG seeks $18.5 million in specific additional funding:

$5 million for stage two of the TitlePage enhancement
$10 million over a two-year period—‘matched by $6 million from the university sector’—for a National University Press Network
‘a minimum $3.5 million per annum’ for authors via the Literature Board.

The BISG also recommends the reallocation of $30 million over three years from the existing Digital Education Revolution funding; and the allocation of $5 million from the $50 million fund currently allocated to the Promotion of Excellence in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education program. In addition to these funding requests, the BISG recommends a number of initiatives for which the report does not state a cost estimate.

Category: Features