Changing Market Information Regimes: A Case Study of the Transition to the BookScan Audience Measurement System in the U.S. Book Publishing Industry

Abstract

This article presents a case study of the transition to a new market information regime, via an analysis of the transition to the BookScan system of measuring book sales and the potential impact of this new measurement system on how publishing industry decision makers perceive—and respond to—their competitive environment. This study critically examines the traditional systems of audience measurement—and their uses—in book publishing, as well as the diffusion process for the BookScan system. This study finds many similarities between the introduction and potential impact of BookScan and the introduction and impact of new audience measurement systems in other media, such as stronger resistance from content producers (e.g., publishers) than from other stakeholders (e.g., agents, retailers), as well as a likelihood that widespread usage of the new measurement system will contribute to greater fragmentation and greater volatility of the measured industry.