The Case of E-books in Sweden’s Media Industry : A case study on what potential factors that could influence the development of e-books in the Swedish media industry.

Sammanfattning: This research intends to address potential factors concerning Sweden’s poor distribution of e-books (electronic books) by using theories such as digitization, media economy, and the theoretical framework of the production of culture perspective. To examine what these factors are and how they affect the development of the e-book in Sweden, we will answer the following research questions: 1. What potential factors could have influenced the e-book development? and 2. How may these factors affect the development of e-books in Sweden? The chosen method was the case study approach, with the contribution of qualitative interviews and multiple data sources. The research conducted five interviews with actors within the Swedish book industry that were recruited by e-mail and through snowball sampling. The interviewees provided the research with qualitative answers, as well as additional data sources, such as reports, sales statistics, and legal documents. The secondary data enlarged the knowledge concerning the phenomenon of e-books, thus made it more manageable to examine. The result of the case study identified four potential factors that actors believe could be the reason concerning the e-books' lack of success in Sweden: cultural values, technological development, the libraries' role, the lack of commercial actors, and sales tax. In conclusion, the study show that several factors may have affected the development of e-books in Sweden. However, the research cannot distinguish one sole factor that explains its poor distribution.