Keeping Things (A Little Too) Simple

"Fools ignore complexity. Pragmatists suffer it. Some can avoid it. Geniuses remove it," wrote renowned computer scientist Alan Perlis. Anyone who has examined the landscape of the advertising technology industry can appreciate this sentiment. While the computer scientists who create the code we use may revere simplicity, the operations and relationships we've built around that code are often convoluted.So it probably shouldn't surprise us that 75% of digital publishers participating in the State of Ad Ops 2015 study use fewer than 10 technology providers and no more than two ad servers. These publishers earnestly prune their technology stacks to lessen the burden that comes with ad tech complexity. It's an early indication that predictions of brutal industry consolidation may be accurate. If you participate on the buy side of the advertising equation, this is pretty sobering. How can you expect to reach a wider audience in innovative ways if publishersyour gateway to those audiencesare circling the wagons?Fortunately, there's more to learn from what these publishers said in the survey. When asked to cite workflow inefficiencies, publishers highlighted problems that should be solved by consolidation. And in their descriptions of areas that need improvement, serious drawbacks to the "less is more" strategy begin to surface. Understanding these sell-side pain points will help brands reach audiences in a market that seems short on options. Continue reading at AdAge.com Continue reading at 'Advertising Age'

[ Advertising Age | 2015-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #buy side #wider audience #innovative ways

Other Publishing stories related to: 'Keeping Things (A Little Too) Simple'


A Wondrously Simple, Tactile Comic Book For The Blind

Philipp Meyer re-envisions the comic book in a Braille-like format. His simple story uses basic shapes but packs an emotional punch. Comics, by nature, depend on visual storytelling. Philipp Meyer, an industrial design student at Potsdam’s University of Applied Sciences, wanted to introduce... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-06-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


A celebration of all things books at USC

L.A. Times Festival of Books: Joyce Carol Oates, Carol Burnett, Lemony Snicket and Jamaica Kincaid are among the 500 authors appearing at this weekend's festival for readers of all ages.Since background-check legislation was voted down in the Senate on Thursday, Adam Winkler, author of... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-04-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #times festival #lemony snicket


There’s No Such Thing as “Normal,” say UK Publishing CEOs

Several UK CEOs set the agenda going into next week's London Book Fair. Top of the list: communicating with consumers and coping with the relentless pace of change in publishing. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-04-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Medium's New Collaborative Publishing Feature Encourages Authors To Create Better Things, Together

Medium's hypothesis has always been that people create better things when they work together. The publishing platform's newest tool helps its authors do just that. Biz Stone and Ev Williams' founding mantra for Medium, the publishing platform they launched last August, was, "People create... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2013-04-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #publishing platform #biz stone #ev williams #sea change


Arthur Frommer takes brand back from Google, will keep guidebooks going

The tale of Google and Frommer's famed travel guides has taken another twist this evening. Associated Press writer Beth Harpaz reports Arthur Frommer confirmed over the phone that he has retaken control of the brand from Google, and plans to continue publishing them in ebook and print formats,... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2013-04-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #continue publishing #print formats #full statement #image credit


Husain urges publishers: 'act now to keep bookshops'

The c.e.o. of Foyles has called for publishers and suppliers to support bookshops with better... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Libraries are still vibrant, say Americans – but need to keep up

Libraries are 'important' to their communities, say 91 percent of Americans in a Pew survey, but they need more ebooks and more programs for children. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-01-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #pew survey


9 Other Things That Harper's Publisher Rick MacArthur Googles

"Try finding Harper's Magazine when you Google "magazines that publish essays" or "magazines that publish short stories" -- it isn't easy." No, Rick, no it's not. Continue reading at The Atlantic

[ The Atlantic | 2013-01-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |


Rupert Murdoch says Los Angeles Times purchase not a sure thing

Now that Rupert Murdoch is spinning off News Corp.’s publishing properties into a separate company, media observers have identified the Los Angeles Times as a likely target for acquisition. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-01-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #rupert murdoch #separate company


Newspaper Pay Walls Are A Good Thing - Here's Why

Newspaper publishers struggle to successfully monetize their online content, and they are not getting any help from journalism schools, despite the fact that these are the very institutions preparing young people to enter the shrinking field and the ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher

[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-11-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #journalism schools


Fifty Shades Keeps Momentum

To see the international success of E.L. James’s Fifty Shades trilogy, just take a look at Italy, where the entire trilogy figures among the top six bestselling October titles. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-11-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #fifty shades #international success


The Irrational Allure of the Next Big Thing

Earlier this week, Random House shelled out more than $3.5 million for Lena Dunham’s first book, Not That Kind of Girl. She has an amazing résumé for anyone, let alone a 26-year-old, having directed two feature films and scored four Emmy nominations for her TV show, HBO’s Girls. But what makes... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2012-10-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #big thing #lena dunham #emmy nominations #tv show #track record


Casual Vacancy keeps pole position

J K Rowling's The Casual Vacancy (Little, Brown) has retained pole position in the bestseller... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #casual vacancy #pole position


Big Hits Keep Selling Well

Swedish crime writer Camilla Läckberg has seen international success since releasing her 2003 debut, Ice Princess (published in 2010 by Pegasus), and to date her books have been translated into 33 languages. In France, her 2008 novel The Drowning was the top title. Earlier this year, Pegasus... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #big hits #international success #top title


Twitter founders create Branch and Medium to keep the conversations, collections flowing

If you've ever been so embroiled in a chat or sharing splurge that you've been told to "take it off of Twitter," you now can -- sort of. Twitter co-creators Biz Stone and Ev Williams have launched Branch and Medium, two companion services that (naturally) use a Twitter sign-in but narrow the... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2012-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #static collection #collaborative efforts


The App's The Thing: Shakespeare, Rebooted

The world's most famous playwright was a media theorist, says the co-creator of a new "Tempest" app for iPad, Notre Dame professor Elliott Visconsi. Here he explains how you re-create the bard for the iOS age.Today the lofty Times Literary Supplement--“the leading international forum for... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2012-07-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #silicon valley #changing rapidly


Random goes overseas to keep Shades in stock

Random House is printing extra stock of Fifty Shades of Grey in Germany to help keep bookshelves... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2012-06-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #random house #fifty shades


Wild Things author dies

American writer and illustrator Maurice Sendak, author of the classic children's book Where the Wild Things Are, has died at the age of 83. Continue reading at Stuff

[ Stuff | 2012-05-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #american writer #classic children #wild things


Maurice Sendak dies at 83, author of 'Where the Wild Things Are'

The enduringly popular children's book illustrator and writer radically changed the genre with tales of outsized monsters and frolicsome humor that tapped into the fears of childhood. He also collaborated on numerous operas, films and TV programs.Maurice Sendak, the children's book illustrator... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-05-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #wild things #book illustrator #tv programs #maurice sendak


Maurice Sendak showed us 'Where The Wild Things Are'

Maurice Sendak wrote and illustrated the acclaimed 'Where The Wild Things Are,' along with other children's books. He passed away early Tuesday in Connecticut. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor

[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-05-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with: #wild things