Can a one-size-fits-all, low-price, consumer-dominated sales model support a diverse, innovative, challenging literary output?It is either an existential threat to intellectual freedom or a rustbelt media industry meeting its comeuppance at the hands of disruptive technology. The battle between the multibillion-dollar publisher Hachette (and now the Scandinavian publisher Bonnier) and the even more multibillion-dollar Amazon is usually discussed in high-minded tones, particularly by publishers and their authors. But at heart, it is merely another collision between producers and consumers that has a particular significance only if you ascribe a value to books as cultural artefacts. It is perfectly possible, instead of Hachette and Amazon, and the 900 writers who took out a two-page ad in the New York Times to protest, to substitute supermarkets, dairy farmers and the price of milk.Although books account for only 7% of the sales of the Everything store, Amazon sells a lot of them. In particular it has 60% of the ebook market. It believes a flat-rate sales price for new books and bestsellers delivers higher sales and bigger profits. Hachette disagrees. Amazon is forcing the issue by disadvantaging Hachette books (no buy button, no discounts and so on). Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2014-08-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Recommended Reading highlights the best long-form writing on technology and more in print and on the web. Some weeks, you'll also find short reviews of books that we think are worth your time. We hope you enjoy the read. The Subversive Science Fi... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2015-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nina George's international bestseller features good food, talk of love, and picturesque scenes of rural France. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2015-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Reading Agency is hoping to set a new record for "most pledges received for a reading campaign" for this year’s Summer Reading Challenge, which launches tomorrow (11th July). The agency has teamed up with Guinness World Records for the challenge and, starting from this weekend, libraries... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Scout is all grown up—and Jem is, well, you'll see... Go Set A Watchman Go Set a Watchman, Harper Lee's long-awaited prequel to her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird, hits shelves July 14. But if that still seems like too long to wait, both The Wall Street Journal and The... Continue reading at Fast Company
[ Fast Company | 2015-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As long as they pay publishers every time a book is read, ebook subscription services are more successful the less people read. The post Netflix-Like Book Services Would Be Happy if You Read Less appeared first on WIRED. Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2015-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Items that inspired 'Mary Poppins,' given by P.L. Travers herself, are on view at the Children's Center of the main branch of the New York Public Library. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Former Aitken Alexander m.d. Andrew Kidd has launched Alexi, a book recommendation app giving “people a new channel of discovery”. The app is currently in beta, but users of the full version of the app, available in late autumn, will be able to read books recommended by authors including Ali... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hachette Children’s Group (HCG) has appointed Heather Crossley, current publisher of Ladybird Books, to the newly created role of pre-school and baby publisher. Starting in early autumn, Crossley will create a new pre-school and baby imprint. She will report directly to c.e.o. Hilary Murray... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon is launching Prime Day, "a new global shopping event, offering more deals than Black Friday", open solely to members of its Prime service. The first such day will be held on Wednesday 15th July and will offer customers in the UK, US, Spain, Japan, Italy, Germany, France, Canada and... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harper Lee's sophomore novel, 'Go Set A Watchman,' comes out next week. We want to know if, after all the controversy, you'll be reading it. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-07-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Guardian is to publish the first chapter of Harper Lee’s forthcoming novel Go Set a Watchman (William Heinemann) ahead of publication, as part of the publicity campaign building up to the novel’s release next week. Go Set a Watchman will be released on Tuesday 14th July. The Guardian will... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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It is in Amazon’s “interests" to "treat suppliers well” but the company should communicate with them better, Amazon’s head of public policy for the UK & Ireland has said. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Nicholas Sparks is more than just a bestselling author of sappy romantic fiction; he's a pop culture phenomenon. A former pharmaceutical salesman from Omaha, Nebraska, Sparks has sold a reported 97 million books worldwide, and the films based on them have, so far, have grossed a total not far... Continue reading at Stuff
[ Stuff | 2015-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Association of Online Publishers Digital Publishing Awards give consumer publisher of the year award to newspaperThe Guardian picked up three prizes at this year’s Association of Online Publishers (AOP) Digital Publishing Awards, including consumer digital publisher of the year and best mobile... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2015-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Mexico has finally launched its full retail operations and a print bookstore; it had previously offered Kindle ebooks since 2013. The post Amazon Mexico Now Sells Print Books Online appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-07-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon UK has launched Prime Now in London, which will allow customers in the capital to receive purchases within one hour of ordering them. Only Amazon Prime members are eligible for the service, in a further move to encourage customers to sign up to the £79-a-year membership. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-07-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Personal Creations show how long it takes kids to read classic books, from Clifford the Big Red Dog to Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. The post How Long It Takes Kids to Read Popular Books appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hachette Children’s Group (HCG) has appointed Katie Price, former global director of publishing at HIT Entertainment and Mattel, as licensing director. Price will take up the role at the end of August and will report directly to c.e.o. Hilary Murray Hill. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2015-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A new survey showed that Russian readers preferred printed books over eBooks by 49% to 9%, though 37% surveyed said “that they do not read books at all.” The post Russians Who Read Still Prefer Print Over Ebooks appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-06-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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WRITING books must be in the DNA of Times journalists. Even the paper’s founding editor, Henry J. Raymond, cranked them out, including his “History of the Administration of President Lincoln” in 1864. The next year, he r ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2015-06-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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