Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos took the stage at a large airplane hangar in Santa Monica, Calif., this morning and presented a dazzling, methodical, hourlong disquisition on the state of the technology business. He began by explaining why most of the iPad’s competitors have failed: “They’re gadgets,” he said, “and people don’t want gadgets anymore. They want services that improve over time.” He spent five minutes explaining Amazon’s rock-bottom pricing strategy. The company, he explained, aims to “align with our customers,” so the firm only makes money when people “use our devices, not when they buy our devices.” Bezos beamed as he showed how Amazon is remaking the book business. In the first year after getting a Kindle, people buy nearly five times as many books, he said. That should put a stop to the snobbish argument that Amazon is killing “literary culture.” Continue reading at 'Slate'
[ Slate | 2012-09-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
In the past few years everything about the book business has changed, and with it the role of the rep, or district manager, as many are now known. In part that’s a reflection of how ordering has changed, especially with the increasing adoption of Edelweiss, the interactive publishers’ catalogue... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It was a chance chauffeur job, shuttling a bored author back to his hotel room, that got Dan Halpern into publishing. The author was Paul Bowles, it was the late 1960s, and Halpern agreed to take the writer on the long drive back to Santa Monica when Bowles tired of the party hed been thrown at... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-11-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In the Internet age, theres been no shortage of talk about the future of libraries, and much speculation about where libraries fit in the increasingly digital-rich media market for American consumers. Now, there is data. This month Library Journal released the first issue of a quarterly... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After the initial flurry of excitement surrounding the release of their digital editions, magazine publishers are now beginning to focus on the strategies behind the products. In addition to complete digital editions, many are seeking other avenues to repackage and sell digital content. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Industry experts said the biography of Steve Jobs could easily sell millions of copies in print, audio and ebook editions. Continue reading at The New York Times
[ The New York Times | 2011-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BlogHer co-founder and CEO Lisa Stone sounded triumphant today in San Diego, where her women-focused blog and advertising network was hosting its seventh annual BlogHer conference. More than 3,500 bloggers were in attendance, and the company announced some new partnerships like the "Live Well... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2011-08-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Much has been made about the importance of bricks-and-mortar bookstores as showrooms, places that will help prevent the book business from going the way of the music industry as the sales of digital books grow. But hundreds of showrooms and thousands of square feet of book retail space are about... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With the effect of the recession steadily, if slowly, fading, and the industry getting a better grasp on the role ebooks will play in its future, the 2011 edition of BookExpo America was the most vibrant since the economy collapsed in late 2007. BEA event director Steve Rosato noted that with... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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