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 ]
News tagged with:
#alexandra elbakyan
#modern era
#academic publishing
#significant developments
#technical term
At age 99, renown indie publisher George Braziller looks back on 70 years in the book business, and a career that saw him rub shoulders with Sartre and PicassoHe pursued Jean-Paul Sartre in Paris, dined with Pablo Picasso in Antibes, and rescued New Zealand’s Janet Frame from the manuscript... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-08-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#pablo picasso
#art books
#publish books
An adult colouring book inspired by the characters and settings of George R R Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire novels is set for publication in the US this autumn. Bantam in the US has acquired The Game of Thrones Colouring Book in a deal for world rights with Kay McCauley at Aurous Inc. A UK... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#uk deal
#world rights
HarperCollins has acquired the first novel written by Flashman author George Macdonald Fraser, Captain in Calico. The book will be published on 10th September, but throughout August, it will be available from Heywood Hill in Mayfair. Fraser was a longstanding customer at the shop, which... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#10th september
#heywood hill
Publishers in the US including Hachette Book Group, Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster are making $250m (£163m) in free ebooks available to low-income students as part of a scheme announced today (30th April) by President Obama. The new ebook commitments, to cover a three-year... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-05-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#simon schuster
#free ebooks
#president obama
#three-year period
Israeli-based quiz and list publishing platform uses content from organisations including such as the Daily Telegraph and AOLQuiz and list publishing platform PlayBuzz has announced it has raised $16m (£11m) in venture capital funding to drive international expansion.The second funding round,... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-03-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#funding round
#organisations including
#daily telegraph
If you’re one of the few who actually reads instruction manuals, then you may want to grab a new ebook from Google.The Android Quick Start Guide is a free download on Google Play Books that outlines basic Android Lollipop features, such as connecting your Google account, setting up a security... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2014-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#google account
#play store
#free download
#messenger app
At some point, we've all said no to an offer of help before realizing that some help would actually be rather useful. It's a situation that German news publisher Axel Springer has found itself in after spending months lobbying Google to stop indexing... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2014-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
Digital comics marketplace Comixology, which launched a DRM-free program in July, announced that a second wave of 14 publishers will now allow their customers to download and store DRM-free copies of comics they have purchased. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-09-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
When Amazon purchased Comixology, it was a herald of change: iOS users lost the ability to purchase comics in-app, Android users were gifted with a new purchasing system and, now,the digital book seller is going DRM-free. Sort of. Comixology CEO... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2014-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#select publishers
#android users
The Frankfurt Book Fair's new Business Club is making available the new "Global Trends in Publishing" report compiled by Rüdiger Wischenbart for free. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#business club
#global trends
#rdiger wischenbart
Nearly one in four browsers are armed with an ad-blocking tool, reducing revenue at free-content websites, an Irish company said last week. The popularity of ad blocking—driven by users' frustrations with intrusive, distracting or just-plain-ugly-and-noisy ads—threatens the free-for-all model... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2013-08-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#content publishers
#vicious cycle
Chinese publishing houses, long frustrated by the sale of pirated books in the country, have... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#free ebooks
Visitors to London's Science Museum will be offered a free ebook from author Tony White, to... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-04-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#science museum
#free ebook
The crucial role of physical bookshops to a healthy publishing industry was underlined this week... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-03-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#research finds
#crucial role
#physical bookshops
Publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday but expects to emerge from restructuring by the end of June.Publisher Houghton Mifflin Harcourt filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection Monday but expects to emerge from restructuring by the end of June. Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2012-05-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#curious george
Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Wed, 05/10/2011 - 15:21 Publishing Scotland has launched a "Go-Digital Fund" to support Scottish-based book publishers develop their digital programmes and bring their books to a new digital audience. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-10-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#publishing scotland
#digital audience
During this spring’s Digiday Publishing Summit in Vail, Colorado, publishers filled the challenge board with a whole host of issues that ranged from traffic troubles to AI anxiety. Continue reading at Digiday
[ Digiday | 2024-04-08 04:01:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#publishers speak
#publishing summit
An editor explains how publishing LGBTQ books poses unique opportunities and challenges when books are published on both sides of the Atlantic. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#publishing spotlight
#jessica kingsley
Arcadia's purchase of the Cleveland-based house gives the publisher of books about local history and interest a larger footprint in the Midwest. Belt founder Anne Trubek will continue to head the publisher. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2024-02-08 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
The United Kingdom's Publishers Association has opened its annual week of promotion for careers in publishing. The post UK Publishers Open a ‘Work in Publishing’ Campaign appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2023-11-20 16:42:27 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#campaign appeared
#united kingdom
#annual week
#publishers association