When is a book not a book? When it is performed by a starry cast of hundreds. Except it has always been more complicated than thatNews this week of a 17% hike in the UK’s audiobook sales might seem like a niche business story, but it raises an existential question. What exactly is an audiobook today? Is it a book? Is it a play? Or is it becoming something else entirely? What is clear is that a jostle for market dominance is driving it into new dimensions. The streaming platform Spotify followed its move into podcasting two years ago with the launch of an audiobooks business. Though it has yet to start making its own recordings, last autumn it made a deal for 200,000 audiobooks to be available to its premium users.Not to be outdone, Amazon-owned Audible – accustomed to being the market leader – upped its game, hiring the Oscar-winning director Sam Mendes to record multi-voice versions of the Dickens novels Oliver Twist and David Copperfield, and announcing last month that it had reached an agreement for a recording of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter series, voiced by more than 100 actors and featuring a “groundbreaking new soundscape”. The new Potter audiobooks, it said, would not usurp but “sit alongside and complement” conventional recordings by Stephen Fry and Jim Dale, which Audible also hosts. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2024-05-10 17:25:03 UTC ]
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PW spoke to the former NBCC president about his new venture, Freeman's, a series of anthologies published by Grove Atlantic. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-08-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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A 1.6% decline in the number of traditionally published print titles in the US last year shows... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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There was no missing the life-size photo of Pope Francis near one of the entrances to the 18th annual Catholic Marketing Network trade show July 29-Aug. 1. He was there in spirit, perhaps, and certainly adorned many a book cover at a show publishers said brought robust sales and many... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-08-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Xiaoying Chu at Charlesworth (Beijing) Information Services details the booming Chinese digital publishing market and the strides being make by online booksellers. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-08-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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After the BBCs commissioning of Walter, a police comedy drama submitted by ITVs Kevin Lygo under the pseudonym Ruby Solomon, some commissioners are said to be wearily preparing to find out all the names of their rivals kids, so theyre ready in future for scripts by good but unknown writers for... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-08-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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By Jim Anderson To those steeped in the traditions of the publishing business, it may sound a bit odd to talk about the maturation of social media, which in many ways is still in its infancy. Yet social media is... Continue reading at Publishing Executive
[ Publishing Executive | 2014-08-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon recently extended a public challenge to Hachette, saying that if the publisher will lower ebook prices to $9.99, the company won't ask for a larger share of the revenues. This is the first time Amazon has publicly shared details of the dispute between the two companies. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-07-31 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Scholastic’s Graphix imprint celebrated its 10th anniversary while Abrams, IDW, Viz, and Papercutz showcased old and new kids' and YA properties at this year’s San Diego Comic-Con International. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The European Commission is to take "a few more weeks" to finalise its White Paper on... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The overall book market including print and digital fell by 4% in 2013, according to Nielsen Book... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-07-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The judge presiding over the antitrust case involving Apple Inc.’s $450 million offer to settle an ebook price-fixing lawsuit is said some provisions of the deal could reduce consumers' recovery, Reuters reported. U.S. District Judge Denise Cote said Thursday during a teleconference that she is... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal
[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2014-07-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Carolrhoda Lab is releasing in spring 2015 "The Bunker Diary" by Kevin Brooks, a YA novel that ignited a firestorm of controversy in the U.K. recently, when it was awarded the Carnegie Medal. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The executive suite at Conde Nast, publisher of Vogue and Vanity Fair, experienced a shakeup Wednesday that leaves Vogue Editor Anna Wintour as the unchallenged top editorial voice at the company and moving Conde Nast closer to an eventual transition in the CEO role.The company said its longtime... Continue reading at Advertising Age
[ Advertising Age | 2014-07-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hugh Howey says his study, based on calculation of Amazon sales, shows 'real progress' for authors who have chosen to go it aloneA new report claims that self-published authors have surged to 31% of ebook sales on Amazon.com, and are now earning more ebook royalties than writers published by the... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-07-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Some Amazon users spotted an ad for a Kindle Unlimited service, which would let users access as many ebook and audio titles as they wanted (within a certain library) for $9.99 a month. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2014-07-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With a recent film option, could this novel by Toronto-based author Claire Cameron gain more traction in the U.S. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Led by book format comics with $415 million in sales, the North American comics and graphic novel marketplace generated $870 million in sales in 2013, according to a new estimate by ICV2 and Comichron. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Egypt, where book sales have fallen by 50%, has given a home to several Syrian Islamic publishers who say the faithful need them as much now as before. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-07-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Little, Brown Books for Young Readers has an agreement with Marvel to produce a series of movie tie-ins based on the popular films of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-07-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Is it too much to ask for a comic book flick that doesn't rely on three crappy prequels for the plot to make sense? Let's lose the complicated, interwoven storylines and focus on quality standalone films. Angry Nerd explains why Marvel's new Guardians of the Galaxy gets it just right. Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2014-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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