It was not before the electronics were introduced in phototypesetters and scanners in the sixties of 20th century, the rapid development in the printing process started. At the beginning the prepress process was still manual, using film in the process to combine text and pictures.
The development in digital communications at the end of the 20th century has been a big challenge for the conventional information industry
Satellites have made TV broadcasting global. The introduction of digital TV will again multiply the supply of TV channels.
Internet offers the possibility to access publishers files without having any physical printed media or CD-ROM. This makes worldwide distribution easy, and offers the consumer unlimited possibilities for real time information supply.
Digital printing developed in the last decade of the century has made it possible to print short runs in a fast and economic way. Digital printing in its first generation covers print runs from only a couple to some thousand prints. The output quality is already acceptable, but the volume is not yet a threat for conventional printing.
Influence of New Media on Conventional Printing
When CD-ROM and electronic publishing started to take a position on the media market in the beginning of the nineties of 20th century, forecasts for the future of printed media were contradictory. Many technologists, excited by the possibilities the new media offers, predicted that the use of paper would start to decrease rapidly, and electronic media would replace books and magazines. Paper consumption has, however, still continued t grow steadily, and printing press manufactures are well booked, which means that printers still believe in a future for the conventional products.
