| 摘要: | 美國圖書出版業自1960年以來興起一股集團化風潮，至今方興未艾。20世紀末，傳播科技快速發展，使得出版媒介不斷更新，電子書、及時印刷（print on demand, POD）、無紙出版將是未來的趨勢，出版集團也將因新世紀的到來，而有更大的發展空間。本研究探討美國40年來圖書出版業購併的起源與發展，分析集團化對出版產業的影響，並提出出版人的專業認同與在社會中應扮演的角色，綜合研究結果，得出以下結論。 （一）在美國圖書出版業購併的起源方面，跟隨著商業成長的趨勢，出版業的購併風潮起於60年代初期，加上二次世界大戰後，美國教育普及、人口及收入增加、政府提高圖書館預算、資訊技術的發展等，帶動圖書方面的需求。出版公司於是藉由外部購併的手段快速成長，形成出版集團。 （二）出版業的購併發展到80年代末期，國際性出版集團為了拓展市場，將經營的觸角延伸至美國，並且在90代末期佔有相當大的美國圖書市場；而媒體業者感受到智慧財產權所帶來的商機，也紛紛跨足出版業，至90年代扮演更為重要的角色。 （三）美國出版業的集團化現象影響所及包括：（1）集團基於利潤的考量，致力於暢銷書的出版，不僅影響編輯的自主性，也影響書籍的多樣性。（2）在以大吃大的情況下，出版集團擁有更大的市場佔有率。（3）大型集團給予連鎖書店和網路書店更多的折扣和結帳條件，因而掌握更多的零售通路。（4）獨立出版社以「小而美」的經營模式，提供小眾出版的可能性。 （四）圖書出版業的集團化現象更引伸出其他值得關懷的議題：（1）美國教科書自主權掌握在外國出版集團的手中，恐將影響到美國民族文化的自主性。（2）出版做為一種專業，具有文化傳承與開啟的責任，出版業集團化後，集團經理人往往缺乏這樣的認知，而把股東的利益放在其他關係人（編輯、作者、公司員工、社會大眾）的利益之上，瓦解出版人的文化角色。
There have been waves of mergers and acquisitions in the U.S. book publishing industry since 1960’s, in which American’s conglomerate publishers are established. At the end of the century, new medium of book publishing such as electronic book, POD, and paperless publishing are invented with the rapid development of new technology of mass communication. This dissertation studies the origin and development of mergers and acquisitions of U.S. book publishing within last forty years, and analyses the impacts of conglomeracy on book publishing industry. Finally, how the cultural role of publishing as a profession is changed by and what implications are with the rising of conglomerate publishers are also discussed. The conclusions of this study are as follows: 1.Mergers and acquisitions in book publishing industry in 60's and 70’s are motivated by factors such as economic growth, demographic changing, the rising of budget of public library, and the development of information technologies. Publishers grew in terms of mergers and acquisitions. 2.Starting from the end of 80’s, international publishing conglomerates begun to enter into the U.S. market and dominated it by the end of 90’s. A few of U.S. major media corporations also entered the publishing market through horizontal integration, and became influencing conglomerate publishers. 3.The influences of consolidation of U.S. book publishing are: (1) Driven by the profit maximization, conglomerate publishers focused exclusively on bestseller, so much so that the autonomy of editors and diversity of books are diminished; (2) The market share of the major conglomerate publishers were getting bigger; (3) Major conglomerate publishers gave special price and promotional concessions to chains in order to control more channels; (4) Independent bookstores can focus on the market of minority audiences to survive. 4.consolidation in book publishing industry causes other important issues, such as: (1) U.S. textbook market is dominated by foreign publishers, and its cultural autonomy may be threatened; (2) As a profession, publishing should transmit cultural inheritance beside profit making, but with the corporatization of publishing by conglomerate publishers and replacement of traditional publishers by professional managers, publishing is striped of its ethical role of cultural transmitting. Publishing becomes a purely business. |
