Fantasy author accuses the online giant of using its market dominance ‘to control what we write and what we read’The grande dame of fantasy Ursula K Le Guin has weighed in forcefully to the debate about Amazon’s role in publishing. In a blogpost on the site Book View Cafe, entitled “Up the Amazon with the BS Machine, or Why I Keep Asking You Not to Buy Books from Amazon”, the American author has spoken out against what she describes as the company’s increasing influence not only on the bookselling market but also on which books get published, promoted and read. Her fierce conclusion is: “Every book purchase made from Amazon is a vote for a culture without content and without contentment.”After an analysis of how the “Best Seller Machine” has worked in the last decades, Le Guin writes that the online retailer is changing the culture of publishing. The Amazon model, she writes, is “easy salability, heavy marketing, super-competitive pricing, then trash and replace”. The ideal book, under this template, is “a safe commodity, a commercial product written to the specifications of the current market, that will hit the BS list, get to the top, and vanish. Sell it fast, sell it cheap, dump it, sell the next thing.” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2015-06-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Expanding the range of its Kindle Singles offerings, Amazon has kicked off an interview series on the e-reader. The first installment of "The Kindle Singles Interview" series features Israeli President Shimon Peres, who was interviewed by Tablet magazine's literary editor, David Samuels. Amazon... Continue reading at AdWeek
[ AdWeek | 2013-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Google is getting into the textbook business by selling and renting materials from the top five education publishers in the US. The new service will launch August 8. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Total revenue at Amazon rose 22% in the second quarter ended June 30, to $15.70 billion, while operating income fell 26%, to $79 million. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-07-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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LinkedIn is the latest social network to take the sponsored-content plunge, announcing today that it will offer a program for marketers. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2013-07-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Forbes Media has launched Forbes Wine Club, a new subscription and e-commerce site that connects subscribers with fine wines they are likely to enjoy. The company has partnered with Lot18 to create ForbesWineClub.com, a customizable wine buying experience. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2013-07-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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More and more association and b-to-b publishers are trying to link their digital content with events. It's a way to connect with an audience after they leave the showfloor, while providing one-stop, multichannel sponsorships for advertisers. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2013-07-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Recorded books are now a billion-dollar business, which Amazon dominates perhaps like none other. Continue reading at The Atlantic
[ The Atlantic | 2013-07-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Meredith Corporation is set to launch a print version of its popular Allrecipies.com brand. The magazine is being rolled out as a bi-monthly publication and is slated to debut in August. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2013-07-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Building on the success of its Pulitzer Prize winning interactive article "Snow Fall," the New York Times will launch what it's calling "an immersive digital magazine experience."Sam Sifton, the former Times food critic-turned national editor, will lead the project. At the same time, he will... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2013-07-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The imprint, titled Jet City Comics, released its first title, a work named 'Symposium #1," on July 9. Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-07-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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B-to-b publisher and professional services provider The Dolan Company has announced agreements to sell off two of its legal services businesses to affiliate groups. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2013-07-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tuesday morning Amazon Publishing announced a new comics and graphic novel imprint, Jet City Comics. It will publish graphic novels by George R.R. Martin, of "Game of Thrones" fame and others.It was only yesterday that I asked my editor when Comic-Con begins, because the comics-related... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times
[ Los Angeles Times | 2013-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Melbourne, FL – Atex, a leading supplier of Content Management, Advertising and Audience workflow solutions (www.atex.com), is pleased to announce that Omnipress, provider of educational content solutions for associations, has released its ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-07-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Fewer magazines were launched in the first half of 2013 than in the same period a year ago, but, on the bright side, a lot fewer folded this year than last, according to MediaFinder.com. The online database of U.S. and Canadian publications released its first-half survey on Monday.And though... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2013-07-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Almost overnight, the New York book publishing landscape got a lot smaller—or bigger, if you happen to work for Random House or Penguin, which last week became the publishing industry behemoth Penguin Random House. With more than 10,000 employees, the new global publisher will control 25% of the... Continue reading at Crains New York
[ Crains New York | 2013-07-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As far as media delivery goes, ebooks are pretty flat. You get the book and maybe some notes or background info from the publisher, and that's pretty much it. That's not good enough for Amazon. The company was just awarded a patent, which it originally applied for on November 24, 2010,... Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2013-07-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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July 2, 2013: A new era in Australian publishing begins today as Fairfax Media launches digital subscriptions for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age websites and m-sites, and for its SMH and Age tablet apps. Digital subscriptions ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-07-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Young people have been put off buying from Amazon after recent revelation's about the company... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-06-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Come on now, why are you wasting your time here, when you could be reading some Gossip Girl fan fic? Roughly a month after announcing its licensed character publishing platform, Amazon has taken the wraps off of Kindle Worlds. The site currently offers up 50-plus commissioned stories based on... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2013-06-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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With Slovakia as guest of honor, Book World Prague offered a gauge of the local book biz, where the recent hike of VAT to 15% has stifled book sales and Amazon is expected to open soon. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-06-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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