Spotify has once again drawn the ire of the music industry. The National Music Publishers' Association has called on the Federal Trade Commission to examine the streaming service's addition of audiobook content into all of its paid subscription plans. According to the group's FTC complaint, Spotify's recent actions are part of "a scheme to increase profits by deceiving consumers and cheating the music royalty system." This requires some backstory. In November 2023, Spotify announced that it would include 15 hours of audiobook content as part of all its Premium subscription plans. A few months later, the company unveiled a new audiobook-only subscription, offering the same number of listening hours for $10 a month. The publishers' organization claims that Spotify's recent price increases are based on offering that extra audiobook content, and that paying customers are automatically being charged for a service they didn't choose and can't opt out of without switching to the free, ad-supported listening experience. And the additional revenue from the higher Premium subscription costs may not go to the music composers. According to the FTC complaint, Spotify will pay about $150 million less in music royalties over the first year of these new bundled Premium plans. The NMPA letter goes so far as to call the new audiobook-only plan "a sham" that "exists solely to allow Spotify to claim that audiobook content is a significantly and independently valuable aspect of its 'bundled'... Continue reading at 'Engadget'
[ Engadget | 2024-06-12 23:52:55 UTC ]
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Several digital publishers are doubling down on the business they still carry some authority over: events. Continue reading at Digiday
[ Digiday | 2023-11-14 05:01:00 UTC ]
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Attorneys for a group of booksellers and publishing industry associations argue that a district court in Texas correctly enjoined HB 900, and that the injunction should be allowed to stand. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-14 05:00:00 UTC ]
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It took Phaidon, which turned 100 this year, 82 years to step into the kitchen. But once it did, it found a niche of its own—and owned it. Executive commissioning editor of food Emily Takoudes spoke with PW about the publisher's cookbook program. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-14 05:00:00 UTC ]
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After executive roles at Grosset & Dunlap and Simon & Schuster, Artenstein launched RGA/Lowell House in 1984, and sold the company to the NTC/Contemporary Publishing Group in 1998. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-13 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Three of the Big Five publishers struggled in the first nine months of 2023, according to recent financial results, as the industry coped with sagging sales and rising costs. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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By publishing unflinching books on topics often perceived as controversial, small publishers can combat restrictions on intellectual freedom. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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What are some of the best indie publishing companies to follow to find your next excellent read? One reader investigates. Continue reading at Book Riot
[ Book Riot | 2023-11-09 11:33:00 UTC ]
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Blaming inflation and customer price sensitivity, Indigo Books & Music, Canada's leading book retailer, saw a 12.4% decline in sales for the second quarter ending September 30. Sales fell both at physical stores and online. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The three-publisher program devised to elevate German open-access research publication reports that it expects a formal signing of a new accord within weeks. The post Research Publishing: Projekt DEAL, Springer Nature in New Five-Year Accord appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-11-08 21:43:12 UTC ]
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In addition to music and podcasts, Spotify has recently been working to cement its presence in the audiobook space. Today, the company announced Premium users in the US will be able to stream 15 hours of free audiobook content monthly as a part of their subscription.... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-11-08 19:20:00 UTC ]
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When asked about their plans for their publishing programs, several publishers of academic religious books shared their ideas. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-08 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Fitzhenry, the president and CEO of Canadian distribution and publishing company Fitzhenry & Whiteside Limited, died on August 26. A celebration of her life will be held on November 14. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-08 05:00:00 UTC ]
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A little over a month after launching in the U.K. and Australia, Spotify's new streaming audiobook service is now available the U.S., meaning that tens of millions of Spotify premium subscribers now have access to a catalog of more than 200,000 audiobook titles—including titles from all the Big... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-08 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The internet's "enshittification," as veteran journalist and privacy advocate Cory Doctorow describes it, began decades before TikTok made the scene. Elder millennials remember the good old days of Napster — followed by the much worse old days of Napster being sued into... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2023-11-05 15:30:18 UTC ]
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Our annual ranking of the world’s biggest book publishers was once again topped by the STM and legal giant, which toppled Pearson from its perch in 2018. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-03 04:00:00 UTC ]
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For a limited time, Amazon is offering an Audible deal on its audiobook subscription with a price of up to 60% off the normal subscription cost. You can cancel at any time during the discounted period and not be committed to a longer subscription. With the discounted Audible... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2023-11-02 15:59:38 UTC ]
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Roxanne Coady talks with John Sargent about his many adventures in book publishing at a time when the industry met many challenges and some of the authors and other characters he worked with along the way. Subscribe and download the episode, wherever you get your podcasts!... Continue reading at Literrary Hub
[ Literrary Hub | 2023-11-02 08:18:56 UTC ]
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A new book argues that corporate publishing has transformed what it means to be an author. Continue reading at New Yorker
[ New Yorker | 2023-11-01 10:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's self-publishing arm has begun a beta test on technology allowing KDP authors to produce audiobook versions of their e-books using virtual voice narration. The audiobooks will be available wherever Audible titles are sold. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-11-01 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Miller, who, with his late wife, Anita Miller, founded Academy Chicago Publishers in 1975, died in Chicago on October 19. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-10-30 04:00:00 UTC ]
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