From the ‘Book to Read’ to the ‘Book to Collect’: Harry Potter and digital platforms in France

Online presentations of printed books have led to a complete transformation of publishers’ work, books’ status, and readers’ habits. Through their webpages, publishers invite visitors to create communities, to join social networks, to communicate their likes and dislikes. Everything about the digital presentation of printed books makes manifest the online existence of both readers and books. How, then, can printed books not only compete, but also evolve and become more visible, by means of digital tools and platforms? This article seeks answers to this question by asking: Through their digital tools are publishers’ webpages placing value on literature or on communication? Are digital platforms transforming the objet-livre (the physical object of the book) from a tool into a work of art? And are they transforming visitors from readers into collectors?