Towards the Electronic Dictionaries in Modern Commercial Context: A Comparative Perspective

With the mushrooming of dictionaries in electronic forms, traditional paper reference works are confronted with a severe challenge and the printing industries have to looking for a new mode of profit-making. The present paper, based on the classification of the mainstream electronic dictionaries in our times, together with a subtle analysis of the pros and cons of paper and electronic dictionaries, describes the tendency of dictionary publishing in Western world and its new business model, pinpoints the problems of Chinese publishing houses and the possible strategies for them to develop in modern commercial context.