Strategic goals of Vietnam publishing industry
At this year’s Frankfurt Book Fair (October 16-20), issues related to the development of artificial intelligence (AI) in the fields of writing and publishing became a prominent topic. According to experts, the development of AI can change the process of writing, publishing and distributing publications. From there, some concerns arose that AI technology could reduce the value of creative works and affect the jobs of authors.
Vietnam participated in the book fair with an exhibition space of more than 100 square meters, introducing about 1,000 books from 23 domestic publishers and book companies. This space is not only a place to introduce books but also demonstrates the strength of the Vietnamese publishing industry in the context of strong digital transformation.
Mr. Nguyen Thanh Lam, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications, said at the opening ceremony of the Vietnam Book Space at the Frankfurt Book Fair: “Vietnam is a country with a rich culture and history of thousands of years, where the book-making profession has existed since the 15th century. Currently, with the development of the publishing industry, Vietnam has become a country with a dynamic economy and great potential in this field.
We are proud to introduce to the book fair more than 1,000 outstanding publications, from the fields of politics, economics, culture to science and technology. This is not only an opportunity to introduce Vietnamese culture but also a cultural bridge between Vietnam and the world."
One of Vietnam’s strategic goals at the Frankfurt Book Fair 2024 is to promote international cooperation. Vietnam had working sessions with the leaders of the Frankfurt Fair Centre to discuss the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU), aiming to become a guest of honor at the book fair in 2028. The Vietnamese delegation also exchanged cooperation with publishing industry representatives from Japan, Malaysia, Singapore, and India; met and negotiated copyrights with more than 50 international publishing units, opening up many opportunities for cooperation and development for the Vietnamese book market.
More choices for Vietnamese readers
Over the years, there have been publishers in Vietnam whose number of translated books and foreign books accounts for a large proportion of their publishing plans. Meanwhile, the process of exporting books by Vietnamese authors abroad still has some limitations. The domestic market is flooded with translated books, and the ratio between imported and exported publications is still large (import 70% and export 30%).
With the efforts of publishers to innovate and access modern publishing technology, many translated books can even be on shelves at the same time as the original books abroad.
Since then, the Vietnamese publishing industry has had more opportunities to exploit and transfer valuable foreign publications to Vietnam, serving the needs of domestic readers. These changes have brought many opportunities and favorable premises for the development of Vietnamese publishing.
New trends in literature, such as the intersection of books and digital media, also create diverse creative spaces and promote new forms of storytelling. Books are now reaching the public through many forms such as e-books, audiobooks, videobooks, etc.
Therefore, publishing units need to focus on the following directions: Innovation and development according to the publishing - technology agency model; producing unique publishing products and distributing multi-platform, multimedia content with the motto of closely following the needs and interests of readers - especially the young generation.
