tang’ essay 2

Nowadays, because of the popularity of portable electronic devices, the number of people who still read printed newspapers and books have decreased significantly. Some people predict that the printed newspapers and books will be replaced completely by online news and electronic book without paying. I partially agree with this statement.

In the future, we will read online news instead of printed newspapers for free. The reasons are easy to identify. Firstly, the news is updated too fast to be printed immediately. By contrast, online news can be posted within a few seconds and the cost of online news is much lower than the printed one. Secondly, the profit model of news outlets has changed, which results in that online news will be free. In the past, news agencies profited from printed newspapers and advertisements. But now, as the number of page views increases, they can make more profits just from advertising. To attract more people to read the news, online news will keep free in the future.

On the other hand, although the amount of printed books has seen a dramatic decline, digital books will remain charged. Traditional books, existing for centuries, have created a special emotional connection and value for people. So, they will have a place in the future. Besides, Books are considered as the crystallization of people’s wisdom and have been established as part of intellectual property for centuries. So, the price of e-books will remain at a new level but lower than the printed one because the cost of e-books is also almost nothing.

To sum up, I agree that printed newspapers will disappear and online news will be free, but printed books will also have their place, and e-books will charge at a lower price.