Charlottesville, VA and London, U.K. - INTERQUEST, a leading market and technology research and consulting firm serving the digital printing and publishing industry, today announced that the 2014 London Digital Printing Forum drew the largest attendance in the event's five-year history. The Forum was held Tuesday, June 24, 2014 at the Royal Society, Carlton Terrace, and attracted over 130 attendees. Held each year since 2010, the full-day educational forum focuses on key trends in the book market and the use of digital printing to produce books.

According to Gilles Biscos, President of INTERQUEST, "Our record attendance shows that the London forum continues to provide an outstanding venue for book printers and publishers. Attendance among publishers was especially strong, accounting for over one-third of the audience. We received excellent feedback from partners and participants about our focus on innovation and creativity, opportunities, and success stories from around the world. Digital printing continues to expand and become integral to our audience who come to share information and take back valuable lessons for their particular environments."

The opening session, "What does the Future Hold for the Book Market," featured a distinguished panel representing printing, publishing and distribution; panelists provided their views of dealing with key issues in their environments. Topics included the role of Amazon in the industry, the evolution of eBooks, the decline in printed books, the changing role of the retail book store, and the growth of self-publishing. The panel consisted of Jonathan Huddart, Head of Sales, Books and Journals, CPI Books; Amelia Douglas, Production Director, Pan Macmillan; and Karina Luke, Executive Director, Book Industry Communication Ltd.

Gilles Biscos, President of INTERQUEST, presented key findings from recent INTERQUEST research in the book market. He discussed not only the UK market, but compared this market with North America and the rest of Europe.

A panel of printers and publishers then shared their experiences in managing and streamlining the supply chain for printed books. The panel consisted of Kate McFarlan, Strategic Director, Clays; Arjen Jansen, Production Director, Collins Learning; and Nick Ross, Production Director, Little, Brown Book Group. Their information reinforced recent INTERQUEST research which finds that supply chain management using digital printing is one of the leading trends among publishers.

The morning sessions concluded with a panel of executives from leading digital printing equipment vendor companies who shared recent technology and application developments at their companies. They also debated on topics and issues key to book publishers and printers. Included were: Reinhold Frech, Sales & Marketing Director, Commercial Printing Group, Canon EMEA; Erwin Busselot, Marketing Director Digital Printing, Kodak Graphic Communications Group EMEA; Benoît Chatelard, General Manager, Production Printing Solutions, Ricoh Europe; and Jean-Marc Pasturel, General Manager, Sales, European Continuous Feed Inkjet Solutions, Xerox.

Following lunch attendees heard additional INTERQUEST research findings from Toby Cobrin, Director at INTERQUEST. The afternoon sessions were then broken into four panel sessions that focused on different aspects of book manufacturing.

The first session focused on trends and developments with POD and short-run production. Speakers included Andy Cork, Managing Director, PrintonDemand Worldwide and Terry Compton, Production Manager, Troubadour Publishing. Speakers explained how their companies used digital printing technology to refine the supply chain for books, and discussed how digital printing has helped self-published authors.

The next session consisted of a panel of printers along with finishing and paper suppliers discussing trends, developments, and issues in the areas of substrates and finishing. Speakers in the session included Hans Gut, Director of Sales & Product Management, Hunkeler AG, Switzerland; Stephen Mellon, Digital Business Partner, Antalis U.K.; Jason Seaber, Technical Sales Specialist, Intelligent Finishing Systems (IFS); and Alan Gray, Production Director, Ashford Colour Press.

The program continued with joint presentations on innovative uses of colour in digital print production, as well as new and emerging opportunities and applications. The joint presentations included Emanuele Bandecchi, Marketing Manager, Rotolito Lombarda speaking jointly with Walter Castiglione, Journals Production Manager, LSWR Srl; and Francis Atterbury, Joint Partner, Hurtwood Press, presenting jointly with Charlotte MacDonald, Director, Special Case Books.

The day concluded with a round table of printers and publishers reviewing the most important issues of the day. The panel was comprised of Carol Cattley, Director, Goodwill Art Service Ltd.; Neill Thompson, Production & Stock Controller, Hay House UK; John Rowell, Managing Director, Jasprint Ltd.; and Martyn Clements, Print Supplier & Procurement Manager, Global Academic Books, Oxford University Press.

The 2014 London Digital Book Printing Forum was sponsored by leading players in the market, including Antalis, Canon, CPI, Hunkeler, Intelligent Finishing Systems/Tecnau, Kodak, Ricoh, Rotolito Lombarda, Timsons, and Xerox. It was supported by the Association of Learned and Professional Society Publishers (ALPSP), Book Industry Communication (BIC), The British Association for Print and Communications (BAPC), The European Publishers Council (EPC), The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA), The Independent Publisher Guild (IPG), The International Association of STM Publishers, and The Publishers Association (PA).

For more information regarding the Forum, please visit: 
www.inter-quest.com/focused-forums/2014London