Something Is Rotten In The State Of E-Book Publishing

The publishing industry has a problem. The old guard haven't innovated. And neither their business models nor their products embrace the digital books revolution. Take the ongoing and complicated spat between Apple and the Justice Department over the agency pricing model and alleged collusion which ended up with consumers being forced to spend more than they needed to. The battle may expand internationally, in fact. Apple tried to expand its 30% revenue share model, which has done very well in the billion-dollar app economy, into books. It also pushed publishers to agree to a very different way of selling their products: Instead of buying books traditionally, at a pre-agreed wholesale price and then pricing them as Apple saw fit in the iBookstore, it would let the publishers set their own price and extract its usual fixed share of the income ... as long as the publishers wouldn't sell ebooks elsewhere.It was a bold move, and one that could and did shake up the industry a bit. Amazon, the publishers contend, had established a monopoly on ebooks, and was selling their wares at overly discounted prices. With Apple's model they could choose to price ebooks lower than physical books cost (appeasing consumers who expect to pay less for a non-physical product), and yet extract more money due to the cost-savings of e-publishing.The DOJ disagreed, and says Apple's deal meant consumers ended up spending much more than they needed to, hence its action against Apple and a laundry... Continue reading at 'Fast Company'

[ Fast Company | 2012-04-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ka-Pow! Marvel Opens Massive Comic Book Images Archive And API To Fans, Developers

The home of Captain America, Spider-Man, and many other beloved comic book heroes is setting them loose on the world. Hulk fans: happy.What's the sound of 8,000 beloved comic book characters storming the globe? We're about to find out.Read Full Story     Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2014-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Why Publishers Need to Embrace Automated Ad Selling

The president of The Media Kitchen sees private marketplaces gaining traction with top publishers, and that's a good thing.The post Why Publishers Need to Embrace Automated Ad Selling appeared first on Digiday. Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2014-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Anomaly Productions Releases 'Shifter' Book App

Anomaly Productions, an indie comics publisher specializing in digitally enhanced graphic novels, has released an app version of "Shifter," a sci-fi graphic novel with augmented reality technology. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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School Specialized in Comic Books to Open in Paris

Coinciding with the Angoulême International Comics Festival tomorrow, French comics guru Guy Delcourt has announced the opening of a new comic book academy in Paris. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bookslut Vows to Right the Wrongs of Book Awards Past

Bookslut is launching the Daphnes, a new award to celebrate the best books of years past and rightfully honor overlooked contenders for prizes, starting with 1963. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nathan Filer wins Costa book prize

Debut novelist Nathan Filer wins the Costa Book of the Year with The Shock of the Fall, his debut novel about loss, guilt and mental illness. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2014-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Missouri's Main Street Books Gets New Owner

Main Street Books in St. Charles, Mo. will officially change ownership on Feb. 14. Current owner, Vicki Erwin has signed a contract with an area resident, a 25-year-old woman who works in the financial industry. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ReDigi Gets Patent to Manage and Sell Used E-books

The first online digital marketplace gets the nod for its invention of a system for "copyless" digital transactions. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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PEN and UNESCO to Bolster Minority Language Publishing

PEN International and Unesco have launched new research and training programs in Kenya, Haiti, Serbia and Nigeria to bolster local book publishing industries. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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10 New Books You Need to Read This Year

From biographies to technical studies and step-by-step guides, here are 10 books that you should look for in the next few months.Of course, we think you can learn a lot online. But, if you're looking to take a deeper dive, there is often no substitute for the kind of thoughtful analysis you can... Continue reading at Fast Company

[ Fast Company | 2014-01-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ALA Midwinter 2014: Abrams Gets in the E-book Game

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Elite Daily: Inside One Publisher’s Viral Boom

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[ Digiday | 2014-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nathan Filer wins Costa Book of the Year

First-time novelist Nathan Filer has won the £30,000 Costa Book of the Year award for his... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Epic! Debuts Kids’ Subscription E-book Venture

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Serious Men: Reflections on My Men’s Book Club

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Online Retailer Books For Animal Lovers Debuts

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Oprah 2.0: Book Club Marries Magazine, TV and Digital

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Outrage at Scotland’s Book Town library cuts

Dumfries and Galloway Council is facing criticism after revealing plans to reduce the library... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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ALA Midwinter 2014: On E-books, Librarians Urged to Think Bigger (and Smaller)

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-01-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Urdu Publishing is Up, But Copyright Problems Persist

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[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-01-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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