Those who take on the global industry that traps research behind paywalls are heroes, not thievesNever underestimate the power of one determined person. What Carole Cadwalladr has done to Facebook and big data, and Edward Snowden has done to the state security complex, Alexandra Elbakyan has done to the multibillion-dollar industry that traps knowledge behind paywalls. Sci-Hub, her pirate web scraper service, has done more than any government to tackle one of the biggest rip-offs of the modern era: the capture of publicly funded research that should belong to us all. Everyone should be free to learn; knowledge should be disseminated as widely as possible. No one would publicly disagree with these sentiments. Yet governments and universities have allowed the big academic publishers to deny these rights. Academic publishing might sound like an obscure and fusty affair, but it uses one of the most ruthless and profitable business models of any industry.The model was pioneered by the notorious conman Robert Maxwell. He realised that, because scientists need to be informed about all significant developments in their field, every journal that publishes academic papers can establish a monopoly and charge outrageous fees for the transmission of knowledge. He called his discovery “a perpetual financing machine”. He also realised that he could capture other people’s labour and resources for nothing. Governments funded the research published by his company, Pergamon, while... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2018-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
SourceHOV argues that artificial intelligence can obviate the need for publishers to manually create metadata tags and significantly streamline workflows. The post On Automating Metadata Extraction for Academic Publishing appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-11-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The result of a merger, Springer Nature is a global powerhouse in STM and academic publishing. The new brand was on display at the 2015 Frankfurt Book Fair. The post Springer Nature Introduces New Brand to Frankfurt appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pan Macmillan has acquired the first titles for its new sports list. Non-fiction Publisher Robin Harvie acquired UK and Commonwealth rights to Daniel Friebe’s The Best There Never Was from David Luxton Associates. Friebe’s book will be the “definitive” biography of Jan Ullrich, who alongside... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The CEO of Publishing Technology offers his five predictions for academic publishing in 2015, including porous paywalls and the rise of the SAMPC countries. The post Five Academic Publishing Predictions for 2015 appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-01-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The discovery of talent via YouTube, a resurgence at Waterstones, the long-running Amazon/Hachette terms dispute and the thinning out of independent publisher numbers were among the significant developments in 2014, according to prominent figures in the industry. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-12-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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One rarely uses the term booming in publishing these days, but it’s fair to say that academic publishing about Islam is doing just that. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cambridge University Press has appointed Mandy Hill as the new managing director of academic publishing, taking over for Richard Fisher, who will be leaving in December after 30 years at the Press. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The L.A. Register's debut reflects a belief by the owner of Freedom Communications that print still sells well in the modern era of digital media.Commuters at Union Station in downtown L.A. got an early look Wednesday at the first edition of the Los Angeles Register. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2014-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Following yesterday's look at trade publishing, George Lossius, CEO of Publishing Technology, predicts five trends for the academic publishing sector in 2014. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Open sharing has been around forever, accelerating progress in diverse fields. Computing (e.g., Homebrew Computer Club), code (open source), and even academic publishing ("open access", which goes beyond peer review) are just a few that have multiplied their social impact thanks to this... Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2013-12-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Richard Fisher, m.d. of academic publishing for Cambridge University Press, has warned that Open... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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George Lossius forecasts a year of significant change for academic publishing, including more consolidation, improved digital textbooks and the rise of mobile. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-01-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Crowd-funding, the technical term for fund-raising sites like Kickstarter.com, has been an increasingly popular way for cartoonists to raise money to publish independent comic and graphic novel projects. While Kickstarter has just hit a new high point with the funding of the first $600,000... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Crowd-funding, the technical term for fund-raising sites like Kickstarter.com, has been an increasingly popular way for cartoonists to raise money to publish independent comic and graphic novel projects. While Kickstarter has just hit a new high point with the funding of the first $600,000... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-02-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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