Digital Proof of Authorship Is a Game Changer for Publishers

Digital Proof of Authorship is becoming more common in today’s publishing world.

This time we want to introduce you to an innovative publishing house that uses technology to improve its services and provide more value to its community. Ivko Design will tell us a bit more about what makes a publishing house stand out and its road to success. Could you please tell us more about your business?

Ivko Design was established in 1989 and back then the main focus was art design and printing. In 2014, we created the publishing house “Ivko” as part of the family. Nowadays, we can offer a great portfolio of various services.

The major part of the company’s manufacture is focused on producing labels for the food, textile, pharmaceutical and chemical industries. We also have a DuPont certificate for the production of raster photopolymer cliches for flexographic printing. The variety of printing techniques we use allows us to provide small circulation with a boutique design. Furthermore, our high-performance machines manage to satisfy our customers’ requirements for big circulations in a short time without compromising quality.

What are some of the greatest challenges that publishers face up today?

Well, to begin with, the great competition makes it harder to grab and hold readers’ attention. Content is easily accessed through various digital platforms over the Internet, plus authors themselves are looking to communicate with their audience at all levels.

Then there is privacy and plagiarism. Copyrights infringement is another issue publishers have to cope with. The Internet has made it very easy for violators to share protected copy without being taken responsible. Overall, the on-demand attitude and digitization drive the industry to adopt a more agile approach.

How could new technology help publishers become more resilient toward the new trends?

Traditional publishers, if not innovating, will become obsolete. A modern publishing house should offer a diverse mix of services for both the digital audience and the offline, too. Technology can help in many instances and improve the author-publisher relationship while enhancing services for the readers.

Publishing houses can give more value to authors by integrating technology to easily connect them with their readers. Using NFC technology (digital tags) on books and special edition magazines, publishers can empower readers to verify and validate the authenticity of issues and thus provide better quality.

Digital authorship proofs will increase readers engagement and protect authors against the distribution of illegal copies. Еxclusive content about the authors or editions can be unlocked in digital form. Generally, incorporating technology, will improve engagement and quality, and also increase the readership value.

Would you tell us a bit more about your latest project on digitizing the cultural heritage of your home town Pleven?

Yes, our company is participating in a project which goal is the digitization of natural and cultural heritage. It is an EU-level effort that aims to preserve history and culture among a few European regions.

The leading stakeholder in this CD-ETA project for Bulgaria is the Euroregion Pleven-Olt. One of its action plans involves the creation of a register of intangible cultural heritage in the Pleven region. The catalogue will include information about customs, traditions, songs and dances.

The register will be printed in limited edition and it will feature digital tags for the users to enjoy a digital copy of the content. Through NFC technology, readers will be able to verify the authenticity of their issue fast and easy with their smartphones.

How do you see your company changes in the near future?

We have been in business for 32 years, I still remember the first print machine that we bought at a fair. It was second hand and back then it cost as much as two cars Volkswagen. Each time we manage to buy a new machine, it feels really rewarding and satisfying.

As technology advance, we will certainly look for ways to offer digitization in print magazines and books. Readers and authors need to be protected against illegal content. Digital twins of offline editions are another way to engage the audience and reach more readers as well, so yes, we are doing it.