A New Word: “Diffintermediation”
Disintermediation portends doom, but “diffintermediation” suggests manageable change.
Easier Access for Small and Medium Enterprises
Access to the scientific literature by small and medium-sized businesses is good, although it could be a lot easier, according to a new report.
Cornell Open-Access Publication Fund
Is the creation of an author publication fund really an experiment? Or a piece of fiscal advocacy dressed up in scientific clothes?
Google Makes Nice with News Publishers
Google seems to be playing nice with news operations. But are they really? And are the news organizations as open to change as they should be?
“Content Nation” — Self-promotion in the Age of 2.0 Buzzwords
A 2.0 Publishing talk delivers little more than anecdotes, buzzwords, and a narrative that conflates technological, biological, and cultural evolution. Does “Content Nation” really deliver a new view of publishing? Or just a business model borrowed from Web 2.0?
New Technologies and the Need for Standards
It seems like a new e-reading device is announced every day. But each device has its own file format and its own unique interface. How can publishers be expected to develop products for such a fragmented market?
E-books: Tasting Blood in the Water
Sony, Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble, AT&T, Verizon — a veritable who’s who of consumer electronics and communications has entered the e-reader fray. Do they smell blood in the water? Is it yours?
A Textbook Case of Missed Opportunities
Textbook publishers engage in a massive shoveling of content onto the iPhone. Will students dig it?
The Google Books Settlement–What Did You Choose?
The Google Books Settlement deadline is upon us. What did you choose?
Deep Links and Commercial Use of Content
A Trojan horse argument about links misses the point — copyright and contracts reach farther.
Learning from Books — Lessons for STM Publishers
Mass-market book publishing is being disrupted more quickly than anyone expected. What lessons can we learn?
Online Advertising — Are Publishers Squandering the Opportunity?
Image via Wikipedia Jim Spanfeller, who is leaving his role of CEO of Forbes.com, recently wrote a provocative piece about online advertising entitled, “Publishers Are Killing Web Advertising’s Potential With Misguided Pricing.” His compelling complaints have to do with publishers […]
Retrofitting Scholarly Communications
As scholarly communication moves from its frankly printer-centric reality of today, publishers will be faced with many more rounds of improvement to their digital information. Is ePub an answer?
Do Publishing Associations Match Publishing Realities?
Trade organizations grew up around traditional information containers and roles. Now that things are changing, is it time to consider collaboration and consolidation in the association space?
How Much Is Enough? Disagreements About Scale in the Age of Information Abundance
A debate about scale touches on how two players are also ramping up their presence, and how that might topple the status quo.