In Peru, the book piracy industry has earned an estimated $52 million–equal to the earnings of the legitimate publishing industry in that country. This nightmare scenario nearly bankrupted Peruvian publishers earlier this century.
Today’s guest on the Morning Media Menu was Daniel Alarcón, author of the critically acclaimed novel, “Lost City Radio.” In the upcoming issue of Granta, he will investigate how book piracy became a lucrative profession in Latin America.
During the interview, Alarcón examined the global implications for readers, writers and publishers.
Here’s a brief excerpt from his Granta article: “Then there are the pirates themselves, informal book manufacturers whose overworked, antique presses are hidden in nondescript houses in slums all over the city. The larger of these operations can crank out some 40,000 volumes a week, and because of their superior distribution, the pirates can sell three times as many copies of a book as the authorized publishers.”