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 ]
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Onswipe, a startup that helps publishers build websites optimized for iPads and other touchscreen devices, is closing out what sounds like a big year. Content published through the Onswipe platform reached 44 million unique visitors over the course o ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-01-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bookshops in the UK have halved in seven years, while consumers spent £261 million on e-... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-12-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A free ebook of our best work just in time for the holidays. Makes a great gift for wordy nerds! And much cheaper than a Battlestar Galactica box set. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2012-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The most recent sign that self-publishing is on the rise? New York Times book critic Michiko Kakutani chose a self-released book as one of her favorite titles of the year. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2012-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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News Corporation said its publishing wing, which is set to be split off as a separate business, incurred losses of $2.1bn in the last financial year. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2012-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The media conglomerate, which plans to separate its entertainment businesses from its publishing businesses into two separate listed stocks next year, said the publishing company would have reported a net loss of $2.08 billion in the year through June 30 if it had been a stand-alone company. Continue reading at AllThingsD
[ AllThingsD | 2012-12-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Faber has teamed up with publishers from different sectors to create an interactive version of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-12-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bookateria, a new book discovery and sales site, features titles that are being discussed, reviewed and recommended by those in the industry and the media. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2012-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nielsen is linking up with consumer insight company Kantar Worldpanel in an association that will... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Newspaper publishing vendors and professionals convene in Frankfurt for education, networking, and business opportunities Publishers, journalists, production vendors, and techies from every corner of the digital market met in Frankfurt, Germany, ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2012-12-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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At the heart of the debate between publishers and libraries over ebook pricing and lending is a simple question: do libraries increase book sales or cannibalize them? Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2012-12-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Children's publishers' digital Christmas strategies are already being unwrapped, with... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2012-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Korea, Indonesia and Turkey are well positioned to take advantage of the growing interesting in developing book markets from Western publishers in coming years. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2012-12-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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29th Street Publishing sees no reason why selling subscriptions shouldn’t be as easy as blogging. At a time when print magazines such as Newsweek and tablet publications like The Daily are shuttering, the team at 29th Street Publishing is betting on the future of magazines for iPad and... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2012-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The European Union has accepted an offer from Apple and four major publishers to reduce pricing restrictions on content offered at Amazon and other book-sellers. After being caught out by the EU, we heard that the offer was likely to be adopted last month, and the commission has now confirmed... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2012-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Foyles asked for advice on designing the bookshop of the future and several notable publishing personalities shared their ideas with Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2012-12-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Random House publishers are to reward employees with a $5,000 (£3,103) bonus partly owing to the success of EL James's erotic trilogy, Fifty Shades of Grey. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2012-12-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Magazine publishers are still tightening their belts three years after the nightmare of the advertising recession shook the industry to its toes. But the itch to launch new magazines shows no sign of going away. In 2012, veteran publishers and novice entrepreneurs launched a total of 195 print... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2012-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ever since Hearst Corp. sold William Morrow to News Corp. in 1999, its book publishing activities have focused on partnering with different houses to publish books based on content from its magazines. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2012-12-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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At this point, expecting Amazon to actually divulge genuine numbers surrounding its Kindle business would be akin to expecting that so-called "fiscal cliff" to just vanish overnight. That said, the company's playing a little less coy than usual in a new press release that announces A/B testing... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2012-12-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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