Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Ending the Book Famine Through eBook Technology and International Co-operation

Stephen King

President DAISY Consortium:

President@Daisy.org

s.p.king@outlook.com

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Since Caxton people with print disability denied access

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Print disabled learners denied access to curriculum

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

What is print disability?(Numbers are uncertain)• Blind & partially sighted people ~285 million globally

• Includes many older people with age related conditions• 1 in 7 people over 60 struggle to read ordinary print

www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs282/en/

• Dyslexic conditions• 1 in 5 US students have a language based learning condition.

Dyslexia is the most common.• UK estimates 4% of population had dyslexic conditions and up

to 15% prone.• 20-30%+ of prison population found to have Dyslexia

• Stroke, aphasia and other physical problems

• What is the situation in the Middle East?

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Until now Libraries for the Blind have helped people toread with eyes ears & fingers

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

But libraries can’t keep up• Explosion of publishing worldwide

• Making Giant print, Braille, talking books, is expensive

• Only 5% of books available in these formats in best performing countries

• Curriculum materials very difficult

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

WBU Launched The Right to Read Campaign in 2000

• "Less than 5% of books are available in any accessible format"

• "It’s a book famine"

• "We want the right to read the same book at the same time, price and place as everyone else“

• DAISY Consortium takes up the challenge!

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

DAISY is a global not for profit consortium.Not for profit members, for profit Friends.

Originally founded by Libraries for the Blind

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

DAISY members support our vision of better inclusion of people with print disabilities

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Our DAISY Consortium Vision

• People have equal access to information and knowledge, regardless of disabilities

Our Mission• Working to create the best way to read and publish,

for everybody, in the 21st centuryBy delivering global partnerships ... that build a more effective solution for everyone.

Committed to a common mission & vision. Coordinating resources to deliver global change

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Our goal is confident readersreading what they want, when they want with

eyes, ears or fingers.Wherever they are in the world.

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

DAISY Consortium Strategy 2000• A better way to read: Delivered by 2004

• Digital talking books with good navigation• E-books with good navigation• Hybrid audio & text books for great experience

• A better way to share resources• Global copyright reform: Marrakech Treaty 2013• Accessible Book Consortium WIPO/IFFRO/IPA/WBU-- 2014

• A better way to publish• Identified potential of eBooks to transform publishing• Partner with IDPF on EPUB development• EPUB 3 launched 2011 with accessibility built in

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

E-Books are transforming access

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

By 2012E-Books Transforming accessibility• Physical: Light easy to use e-book readers

• Low Vision: Enlarge & Bold the print on e-readers

• No Vision: Listen to synthetic speech reading text or use braille display to read with fingers

• Deaf & Blind: Braille display

• Dyslexic: Combine highlighted text with synthetic speech or narrated audio to re-enforce reading

• But still a poor user experience and many barriers

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

This is what Amazon say about the latest Kindle fire

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Reading with Synthetic SpeechScreen reader & synthetic voice built into Apple (Voiceover) & Android (Talkback)

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Reading with Synchronised Text and Speech

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Reading eBook with fingers

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

eBooks in many languages

• eBooks are used in most of the worlds major languages

• Take up and use is fastest in English

• Slower in many cultures

• Arabic eBooks are available

• Access depends on usability of assistive technology

• What is the situation in Middle East?

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Still a long way to go to full access!

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

The Impact: In last 4 yearseBooks have transformed access in UK

for people with print disabilities• In 2000 less than 5% books readable with eyes ears or fingers

• By 2012 7% of all books available in UK accessible by eyes, ears & fingers. (Up from 5% in 2004)

• 84% of top 1000 books sold in 2012 are e-books, readable by eyes, ears & fingers on day of publication. (Up from 54% 2010 & 74% in 2011)

• Of top 1000 99% adult fiction, 77% Non fiction & 43% Children's readable by eyes, ears & fingers

• Illustrations, pictures, Maths, Science still significant problems• www.rnib.org.uk/knowledge-and-research-hub-research-reports/reading-and-braille-research

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

The Impact on people:• Last year Amazon updated

the Kindle app to give better access to its 1.5 million books.

• Lets hear how this transformed reading for Laura.

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

e-Books can deliver inclusion for many (But not all)• E-books can deliver accessibility (In English)

• Consumers have adopted eBooks very fast

• But it’s a poor consumer experience• For everyone

• Poor navigation, limited note taking, poor maths & sciences, trapped in proprietary technology, complex layout difficult.

• For print disabled people• Difficulty with Image descriptions; not everyone has skills.

• EPUB 3 - significant consumer & business benefits

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

DAISY Consortium Strategy

• A better way to read• Books with great navigation and layout• Read with eyes ears & fingers

• A better way to share resources• Global copyright reform: Marrakech Treaty • Accessible Book Consortium

• Infrastructure to share resources globally

• A better way to publish• Partner with publishing Industry• Maximise accessibility of eBooks• Inclusive publishing model

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Global partnerships forInclusive publishing

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Born Digital Publishing• George Kerscher will explain our partnership with

IDPF in Planning for Inclusion session 11:45 - 12:45

• Our ambition is all books are born as accessible e-books. Only some need enhancement.

• The emerging standard for eBooks is EPUB 3• Adopted worldwide: Asia, Pacific, EU, US

• Particularly being used by Education publishers

• Accessibility features built into the standard

• George is President of IDPF, the controlling body for EPUB 3 standard

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

ABC Strategy• TIGAR Service

• International database and book exchange. Already contains over 238,000 titles in approximately 55 languages from the catalogues of libraries from around the world.

• Inclusive Publishing• Promoting technologies and industry standards which

support “born accessible” publishing.

• Capacity Building• Public and private projects to help build technical skills

in developing countries to produce and distribute books in accessible formats.

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Our goal is confident readers,reading what they want, when they want with

eyes, ears or fingers.Wherever they are in the world

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

DAISY Consortium & ABCStrategy for Inclusive Publishing

• Increasing numbers of e-books that have built in accessibility: In-built access publication

• Improved efficiency where publications need access enhanced: Access enhanced material

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Inbuilt accessibility: StandardeBook read by eyes ears or fingers

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

Enhanced accessibility version

• Picture descriptions, complex layout• Combine human narration and text for best experience• Simplified for learning disability• Economically derived from standard e-book• Partnerships with specialist producers

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

The Inclusive “Market Accessibility” model of publishing:

• I can discover access features of any book easily• From bookshop, library, internet, ABC-TIGAR catalogue

• Most eBooks have the access features I need

• I get most books from the same shop or library as others• Read on phone, tablet or specialised device with eyes, ears or fingers

• For some books I need enhanced access features; and get these easily

• Discover what’s available from ABC / TIGAR catalogue

• Easily order from local or global authorised entity (University, school, library, shop, online service provider etc.)

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

How can you be part of this?• Get involved in shaping our plans

• Join DAISY Consortium (MADA is Associate Member)

• Middle East DAISY Consortium?

• Get involved with ABC

• Promote Born Digital Publishing in the region and Arabic language

• Identify Arabic content for TIGAR

• Develop resource sharing network in region

• Support students to learn digital skills

Creating the Best Way to Read and Publish

THANK YOU!End the Book Famine Through eBook Technology

and International Co-operation

Stephen King

President DAISY Consortium:

President@Daisy.org

s.p.king@outlook.com