The Digital Public Library of America Has Arrived
The Digital Public Library of America has launched, and it is an impressive achievement that is bound to grow over the coming years.
Stick to Your Ribs: The Library With No Books In It
Editor’s Note: This post is being republished to coincide with the launch of the Digital Public Library.
Interesting Findings from Ithaka S&R's Latest Faculty Survey
A new survey reinforces so long-term trends, but shows some surprising reversals that anyone interested in scholarly communication should note.
Librarians and Societies and Publishers – Oh My!
A meeting between librarians, publishers, and society leaders reveals common concerns and the ways in which roles are overlapping and mingling.
The Fall and Rise of Market Segmentation
Recent court rulings concerning copyright have put an end to traditional market segmentation practices, but new forms of segmentation will arise based on the analysis of data about individuals.
Six Mistakes the Library Staff Are Making
In a follow-up to the six mistakes sales reps make, here’s a list of six mistakes library staff can make. It’s a sobering comparison.
(Re)Defining the Library, Part 1: Why?
With changes in the scholarly communications world, many old questions for the library are unsettled once again, and many news ones arise. In this first part of a two-part post, we’ll ask the questions.
Data-mining the Library
Libraries generate a great deal of information about their own processes, including circulation records. Making that information available to others could be the basis for a consortium to share and market such library data.
Putting Society Publishing in Context
Society publishing is surrounded by rivalrous groups, which tend to undermine the societies’ activities. It’s time to renew the development of membership through exclusive products.
The ALPSP Report on Six-Month Embargo Mandates — STM Journals Die Slowly, Social Science Journals Die Quickly
The ALPSP study of the possible effects of a six-month embargo for journal content shows that humanities and social science journals are more at-risk, but the entire industry could find the precipice if such mandates were to take shape.
The Big Deal, the Medium Deal, and the Tiny Deal
The Big Deal has emerged because it had to. Where do we go from here? The answer isn’t clear.
A Publisher's Strategy for Patron-Driven Acquisitions (PDA)
While patron-driven acquisitions is likely to reduce publishers’ revenue in the short-term, over the long term it is likely that the revenue will be restored and even enhances. This post lists all the “PDA offsets” a publisher should consider.
Sizing the Market for Patron-driven Acquisitions (PDA)
Patron-driven acquisitions (PDA) has reached a market of approximately $20 million and is growing rapidly; it is likely to more than double over the next 18 months. University presses make up perhaps 25% of the total.
The Portal Problem, Part 2: The Plight of the Library Collection
In my previous posting, I focused on what I believe to be dim prospects for the Encyclopedia Britannica as it transforms from a set of printed volumes into a networked online information portal. My skepticism stems from the fact that […]
Predicting the Present
The text of a presentation delivered at the recent NFAIS national conference, covering various scenarios for the future of publishing. The argument is that these future scenarios are already evident in the world of the present day, though in embryonic form, and that by studying the “embryos,” we can make reasonable predictions as to where things are headed.