Soloveichik (2014)

Source Details

Soloveichik (2014)
Title:	Books as Capital Assets
Author(s):	Soloveichik, R.
Year:	2014
Citation:	Soloveichik, R. (2014) Books as Capital Assets. Journal of Scholarly Publishing, 45(2), pp 101 - 127
Link(s):	Definitive , Open Access
Key Related Studies:	Heald (2007) Robbins and Moylan (2007) Bridgman (2008) Fraumeni et al. (2008)
Discipline:	O34: Intellectual Property and Intellectual Capital
Linked by:	Soloveichik (2013)

About the Data
Data Description:	The study draws upon statistical sales data from 4 secondary sources: 2007 Economic Census; The Service Annual Survey from the Census Bureau; The American Association of Publishers (AAP) survey; The periodic Census of Manufactures survey.
Data Type:	Primary and Secondary data
Secondary Data Sources:	2007 Economic Census The Service Annual Survey from the Census Bureau The American Association of Publishers (AAP) survey The periodic Census of Manufactures survey Nielsen’s Bookscan data
Data Collection Methods:	Quantitative Collection Methods Survey Research (quantitative; e.g. sales/income reporting)
Data Analysis Methods:	Descriptive statistics (counting; means reporting; cross-tabulation) Correlation and Association
Industry(ies):	Publishing of books, periodicals and other publishing
Country(ies):	United States
Cross Country Study?:	No
Comparative Study?:	No
Literature review?:	No
Government or policy study?:	No
Time Period(s) of Collection:	1929 - 2010
Funder(s):

Abstract

“In 2007, authors and publishers released book manuscripts with a value of $9.1 billion. These books will continue to be sold for decades. Because of this long working life, the international guidelines for national accounts recommend that countries classify production of books and other entertainment, literary, and artistic originals as an investment activity and then depreciate those books over time. However, the Bureau of Economic Analysis did not capitalize this category of intangible assets until the July 2013 benchmark revision. In order to change the national accounts, this paper collects data on production of book manuscripts from 1900 to 2010. The paper then calculates how GDP statistics change when book manuscripts are classified as capital assets.
The main empirical results are as follows: 1) Book manuscripts have a useful lifespan of at least fifty years with an annual depreciation rate of 12 per cent per year; 2) Nominal book investment has hovered around 0.06 per cent of nominal GDP from the 1930s until 2010. Therefore, nominal GDP growth does not change much when book production is classified as an investment activity; 3) After 1970, book investment prices rose faster than overall GDP prices. Accordingly, average inflation rises slightly when book production is classified as investment. Before 1970, book investment prices roughly track overall GDP prices.”

Main Results of the Study

• After first publication, new book sales decline steeply between year 3 and year 13 (80%), and lose an average of 12% of their value each year. Nonetheless, books still have a ‘useful’ lifespan of approx. 50 years.
• Classic books that are outwith their copyright term cost approx. 75% of the average price of a classic books within its copyright term.

Policy Implications as Stated By Author

The study does not make any explicit policy recommendations.

Coverage of Study

Coverage of Fundamental Issues

Issue	Included within Study
Relationship between protection (subject matter/term/scope) and supply/economic development/growth/welfare
Relationship between creative process and protection - what motivates creators (e.g. attribution; control; remuneration; time allocation)?
Harmony of interest assumption between authors and publishers (creators and producers/investors)
Effects of protection on industry structure (e.g. oligopolies; competition; economics of superstars; business models; technology adoption)
Understanding consumption/use (e.g. determinants of unlawful behaviour; user-generated content; social media)

Coverage of Evidence Based Policies

Issue	Included within Study
Nature and Scope of exclusive rights (hyperlinking/browsing; reproduction right)
Exceptions (distinguish innovation and public policy purposes; open-ended/closed list; commercial/non-commercial distinction)
Mass digitisation/orphan works (non-use; extended collective licensing)
Licensing and Business models (collecting societies; meta data; exchanges/hubs; windowing; crossborder availability)
Fair remuneration (levies; copyright contracts)
Enforcement (quantifying infringement; criminal sanctions; intermediary liability; graduated response; litigation and court data; commercial/non-commercial distinction; education and awareness)

Datasets

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