Electronic books 'will be in huge demand'

Lord Stevenson, chairman of Pearson plc, told a conference this week that the "book is here to stay" and predicted a bright future for companion websites.

The conference, "Higher Education and Textbooks: The Future", was organised by City University and the Council of Academic and Professional Publishers of the Publishers Association. Hazel Woodward, chair of the e-Books Working Group of the Joint Information Systems Committee, anticipated a "huge demand" for electronic textbooks.