The Nature Network Implosion — Hmmm, This All Seems Awfully Familiar . . .
Another science blogging network implodes, a sign that the age of exuberance is giving way to the business realities.
Is the Cloud Too Weak to Support What Paper Can?
The Wikileaks scandal shows that commercial cloud providers aren’t ready for the realities of publishing and information hosting.
Anxiety and Clichés About the Digital Generation? It's Still the Economy, Stupid
A recent New York Times Magazine feature plays off fears that the next generation is prone to distraction and underachievement. The facts, and an apparently superior media outlet, argue otherwise.
Disruption, Aggregation, and Third Parties
Is our future defined by third-party aggregators? Or is there a business opportunity there worth fighting for?
The Reboxetine Scandal — How Should We Make Medical Trial Data Available?
Another scandal rocks medical journal publishing. It’s time to stop pretending journals can salvage this on their own. It’s time to bring modern solutions to bear.
Print Book Sales Fall, E-Book Sales Rise, and E-Books Will Soon Join the New York Times Bestseller List
The migration from print to digital continues for book readers. Even the venerable New York Times bestseller lists are changing in response.
The Stein Taxonomy: An Analytic Model for Social Reading
Bob Stein has proposed a taxonomy for social reading, which refers to all the conversations and comments that take place about a book.
Why the Simple “Me” Beats the Royal “We”
Users are gaining a “me at the center” expectation, but publishers have a “we at the center” world view. Can the wrenching changes be made? David Worlock worries maybe not.
Modern Book Sales: Amazon’s Tail Gets Longer Just as Google’s Mouth Opens
Updated long-tail research shows that Amazon’s tail is growing, thanks to customers using search engines and user reviews more. How does that make you feel about the Google Books settlement?
Publisher Finds iPad Has Usability and Portability Limitations
A major publisher finds users like the iPad, spend more time with it, but don’t carry it around and encounter usability problems.
Information Brunching — “Amazon Singles” Finds Space Between Essays and Books
Amazon’s latest play is aimed squarely at academics. Will it revive the moribund monograph market?
Is the Medium Still the Message When the Medium is Pervasive?
McLuhan posited “the medium is the message.” Is it still? GenY might teach us a thing or two.
Waiting for a Solution: When Will Subscriptions Reach the iPad?
Publishers still have to sell iPad content via single-issue apps. When will a subscription app finally be allowed?
Is the Music Industry’s Recent Past Still Instructive?
Recent inflection points for the music industry may yet again prove instructive for publishers and others. But is it already too late for us to recover the craft of making products rather than providing content?
Does Rejecting Papers Amount to More Than Just a Transaction Cost?
The expenses publishers incur rejecting papers and book proposals are about more than filtering.