Is the staggeringly profitable business of scientific publishing bad for science?

It is an industry like no other, with profit margins to rival Google – and it was created by one of Britain’s most notorious tycoons: Robert Maxwell. By Stephen BuranyiIn 2011, Claudio Aspesi, a senior investment analyst at Bernstein Research in London, made a bet that the dominant firm in one of the most lucrative industries in the world was headed for a crash. Reed-Elsevier, a multinational publishing giant with annual revenues exceeding £6bn, was an investor’s darling. It was one of the few publishers that had successfully managed the transition to the internet, and a recent company report was predicting yet another year of growth. Aspesi, though, had reason to believe that that prediction – along with those of every other major financial analyst – was wrong.The core of Elsevier’s operation is in scientific journals, the weekly or monthly publications in which scientists share their results. Despite the narrow audience, scientific publishing is a remarkably big business. With total global revenues of more than £19bn, it weighs in somewhere between the recording and the film industries in size, but it is far more profitable. In 2010, Elsevier’s scientific publishing arm reported profits of £724m on just over £2bn in revenue. It was a 36% margin – higher than Apple, Google, or Amazon posted that year. Related: The high-tech war on science fraud Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2017-06-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Read these great books published by Lit Hub staff members in 2023.

As you probably know, Literary Hub is produced by a small staff; most of us are writers, and/or moonlight as editors on other projects. This year, four of our number—that would be 36% percent of full time Literary Hub staffers, not too shabby—published books, which is certainly worthy of... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2023-12-11 17:52:31 UTC ]
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Morry Schwartz steps aside as chairman of independent publisher Schwartz Media

Publisher of the Monthly and the Saturday Paper says he will no longer be involved in day-to-day operationsFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails,free app or daily news podcastMorry Schwartz has given up his leading role at the company he... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2023-12-11 06:44:11 UTC ]
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Children’s Books: Publishers Discuss the Mexican Market’s Evolution

At the 2023 Guadalajara International Book Fair, three Mexican children’s publishers discuss what they describe the sector’s boom. The post Children’s Books: Publishers Discuss the Mexican Market’s Evolution appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

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2023 in books: Protests, bannings and the rise of AI helped shape the story of publishing

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Simon & Schuster Board Announced: Members Come from Disney, TikTok and Publishing

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[ The New York Times | 2023-12-07 14:45:23 UTC ]
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Amy Edmondson’s ‘Fail’ is a Win: England’s Business Book of the Year

Amy Edmondson's book on 'learning to fail' puts her at the top of the Business Book shortlist this year in London. The post Amy Edmondson’s ‘Fail’ is a Win: England’s Business Book of the Year appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

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At Guadalajara: Mexico’s Publishers Promote Sustainability, Social Responsibility

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The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of 2023

From witch stories to near-future noir, here are the year’s 10 best speculative books. Continue reading at The New York Times

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Marcus Leaver Returns to Publishing with Gemini Books Group

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How a Book Publishing ‘Mistake’ Reignited the U.K.’s Royal Racism Furor

The rollout of “Endgame” caused a scandal after a quickly withdrawn translation named family members said to have asked about the skin color of Prince Harry and Meghan’s future son. Continue reading at The New York Times

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Regnery Publishing Will Stay with Salem Media Group

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Publishers launch initiative to highlight Palestinian authors and history

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[ The Guardian | 2023-11-29 17:20:38 UTC ]
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The PW Publishing Industry Salary Survey 2022

Our annual industry survey reveals a modest median pay increase and minor improvements in workforce diversity across trade book publishers. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

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