Google Book Settlement — Opponents 1, Google 0
The Google Books Settlement hits a barrier. The implications of this will need to be sorted out over the coming days and weeks.
Innovation & Longevity in Digital Publishing: Surfing the S-Curve
Innovation requires planning for adoption. Publishers can win in the long-haul by following maps others have drawn.
HarperCollinsGate: Some Thoughts
The HarperCollins e-book lending limitations provide lessons in how both sides typically deal with change.
The Expensive e-Book: The Illogical Reasons Why Paper Books Can Sell for Less
When you explore the revenue model of e-books vs. print books, some pricing practices make sense. But when you factor in the expenses, the logic begins to break down.
The Terrible Price of Free: On E-reading Jane Austen via Google's Ebooks
The new Google Ebooks have made a mess of many popular classics in the public domain.
Kevin Kelly on Generating Value in a Free Copy World
A fascinating talk from last month’s O’Reilly Tools of Change conference, in which Kevin Kelly talks about how the proliferation of screens, the incorporation of gestures and voice, the abundance of data streams, the notion of “always on,” and so […]
Why Does Availability Seem to Drive Down the Quality of Information Goods?
While it seems that availability drives down the quality of information goods, some exceptions make it clear this is not an unavoidable fate. Can scientific publishing beat the trend?
The New Economics of the University Press — A Report from the AAUP
A report by the AAUP outlines the business models available to university presses and makes a case for ongoing subsidies by parent institutions.
Authors — Only One Reason Why the Revolution in Book Publishing Continues
The revolution in book publishing shares some aspects with revolutions everywhere. Here’s a short slideshow by the founder of Smashwords examining current motivations for authors.
The Upcoming Must-See Documentary — Bad Writing
How can you make a movie about why some writing is good, some bad? This trailer makes it seem not only possible, but interesting.
The Digitized Book Corpus and the Cracking Dam
A new report from OCLC underscores how much water is already over, and how fragile the foundation has become.
Margaret Atwood & Cheese Sandwiches — If Authors Starve, Look Who Else Starves, Too
A talk by Margaret Atwood which reminds us that authors are not to be overlooked as we charge ahead with changes in publishing — and that change itself requires thoughtful choices.
Can You Actually "Sell" an E-book? How You Answer Affects Your Revenue Assumptions
Customers have accepted the analogy that they “buy” e-books, but publishers may be faced with accepting the fact that they’re selling licenses. What this could mean to their bottom lines may not be the most painful part of this shift.
Smarter Metadata — Aiding Discovery in Next Generation E-book and E-journal Gateways
For scholars to excel in the information age, technology needs to learn to learn. Perhaps highly specialized humans can help.
Will Reference Books and Journals Survive? A Debate
A debate at PSP reveals much, especially after it ends.