Ricoh Launching New Book Publishing Event

BOULDER—Jan. 31, 2012—Ricoh Production Print Solutions, a leading provider of digital output solutions, announced its first-ever, books-driven, invitational event—The Next Chapter—aimed to bridge the gap between publishers and book manufacturers by addressing the challenging business issues facing the market. This essential gathering will tout a line-up of keynote speakers recognized throughout the print, publishing and manufacturing industries.

The Next Chapter, being held March 6-8, 2012, in Boulder, will feature the unveiling of survey results exploring the industry’s prospects, expert roundtable sessions, and much more content designed to help improve and enhance the future of publishing—no matter the channel.

At this exclusive event, speakers will discuss hot topics, trends and challenges the book market is facing relative to print, e-delivery and workflow. Key issues such as learning how to survive declining print runs, thriving with new applications and identifying growth opportunities will make up this inaugural agenda. Industry evangelists will also be on hand to discuss how the increased demand of digital print-on-demand (POD) book production has impacted the market and provide insight on how to not just survive the changes, but use them to get ahead.

“At Ricoh, we have a few not-so-secret weapons: our deep knowledge and understanding of software, services and output technology, which are optimal for the publishing market. Looking ahead to the proliferation of digital printing and e-readers, it is essential for us to help our customers improve their workflow abilities to better meet their customers’ demands,” said Richard Lloyd, offset to digital offerings manager, RPPS.

“Our goal with The Next Chapter is to open a dialogue for all involved parties to contribute to the solution. Specifically for the book publishing industry, there are an abundance of opportunities that can be identified to meet the demands of the digital generation.”

The experts at the event include top publishing industry executives who will talk to the value of digital workflow and print in book production. Attendees will hear from:

• Jay Diskey, executive director, School Division for the Association of American Publishers (AAP)
After being named executive director in June 2006, Diskey has taken on the role of directing and coordinating all the division’s activities including public policy development, advocacy, and communications. Prior to joining AAP, Diskey headed Diskey & Associates, a public relations and public affairs consultancy specializing in education and workforce development. He has also served as communications director for the U.S. House of Representatives’ Committee on Education and the Workforce, and as vice president of the education practice at Hager Sharp.

At the Next Chapter, Diskey will lead a discussion on the U.S. educational publishing market and the various challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

• Dave White, vice president, Quark
White joined Quark in November 2008 as vice president of alliances and emerging technology. With nearly two decades in the publishing software industry, he is responsible for leading the development of Quark’s strategic partnerships and identifying business opportunities across the company’s desktop and enterprise business. With extensive knowledge of a broad range of science and technology, White has helped define XML standards and has spoken at a variety of publishing conferences.

White will talk about the current and future technologies for the book publishing industry.

• Jim Lichtenberg, president, Lightspeed
Since the early 1990s, Lichtenberg has been consulting and writing about the evolution of the Internet, information technology, and digital books. As president of Lightspeed, he provides strategic counsel to clients in general business and book publishing including: The Conference Board, The Book Manufacturers Institute, Dell, Lightning Source, Houghton Mifflin, the American Library Association and the National Information Standards Organization. As a board member of the Book Industry Study Group, Lichtenberg is leading an industry effort to assess the potential of RFID technology in the publishing value chain.

During the conference, Lichtenberg will provide insight into various publishing trends, workflow issues, and e-content debates.

• Marco Boer, vice president, IT Strategies
Boer is a trusted consultant to the digital industry and focuses on product planning for graphics, transaction, and publishing printers as well as emerging industrial digital printing applications. Prior to joining IT Strategies, he was manager of International Data Corporation’s (IDC) Printer Market Research service.

During his session at The Next Chapter, Boer will discuss the current state of today’s book industry and reveal his thoughts regarding its direction for the upcoming year.

About RPPS
A key division of Ricoh Company, Ltd., Ricoh Print Production Solutions (RPPS) focuses on delivering highly complex, data-driven hardware, software, solutions and services to high volume production print environments.

About Ricoh
Ricoh Co. specializes in technology and services that transform high-volume, document-intensive business processes into more efficient ones. This is achieved through Ricoh’s expertise in Managed Document Services, Production Printing, Office Solutions and IT Services. By working with Ricoh, businesses can streamline the way they work, become more efficient and profitable, and share knowledge more effectively within their organizations. Ricoh’s worldwide operation covers more than 200 countries and areas in the Americas, Europe, Asia Pacific, China and Japan.

Source: RPPS.