When will publishers wake up to the challenge of Amazon?

The books industry still underestimates the disruptive power of Jeff Bezos's awesome ambitionSo Amazon are the bad guys, again. At least according to Harper's Magazine they are. For the former Amazon employee James Marcus, Brad Stone "drops the ball" in his biography of Jeff Bezos, The Everything Store, when he accepts "what is literally the company line – that these extorted dollars 'create the foundation on which everyday low prices become possible'." Marcus tells how some publishers are being "pressured" to pay "for the privilege of presenting their lists to [Amazon] marketing team and buyers" – a story denied in a footnote by an unnamed "Amazon spokesperson" – and goes on to assemble an impressive rap sheet of sharp practice:Of course it's legal. So is Amazon's control of an estimated 65 percent of the ebook market, a near monopoly that's apparently of no concern to the supine Department of Justice. So is its bare-bones price of $9.99 for popular ebooks, a loss-leading tactic that might be classified as predatory pricing if there weren't so many legal hurdles to making such a charge stick. So is the funneling of its British revenues through a subsidiary in Luxembourg ...... and on it goes. But Amazon's aggressive style of doing business is nothing new. What astonishes me is the continuing ability of publishers to underestimate how radically Amazon has changed the industry.Mike Shatzkin is one of those who have understood Amazon's disruptive power all along. But such... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2013-12-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #literary culture

Other news stories related to: "When will publishers wake up to the challenge of Amazon?"

Aspen Institute Looks at a Publishing Industry Challenged to Embrace Diversity

Aspen asks, 'Why is the world of publishing so reluctant to offer Black writers the same major book deals typically offered to white writers?' The post Aspen Institute Looks at a Publishing Industry Challenged to Embrace Diversity appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-08-21 18:41:12 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #publishing industry #major book #white writers #embrace diversity #aspen institute

Publishing Leaders Issuing Warning over Amazon’s Market Power

If Amazon's market power over book publishing is left unchecked, competition in the industry will continue to diminish, the heads of the AAP, ABA, and Authors Guild wrote in a letter to the chairman of the House Antitrust Subcommittee. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-08-18 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #book publishing #authors guild #market power

US Publishers, Authors, Booksellers Call Out Amazon’s ‘Concentrated Power’ in the Book Market

American professional associations for authors, publishers, and booksellers write to the House subcommittee on antitrust issues about Amazon. The post US Publishers, Authors, Booksellers Call Out Amazon’s ‘Concentrated Power’ in the Book Market appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-08-17 14:51:35 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #book market #booksellers call

US publishing bodies protest against Amazon tactics

Key trade bodies in the US – the Association of American Publishers, the Authors Guild and the American Booksellers Association – have sent a letter to Capitol Hill to protest against "anti-competitive tactics" which they say give Amazon "extraordinary" market dominance in the digital books market. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-08-17 13:53:48 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #american booksellers association #digital books #market dominance #capitol hill #american publishers

Canada Could Be Next in Challenging Google to Pay Publishers | News & Notes

In April, French regulators ordered Google to help develop a system to reward the country's news outlets with licensing fees when portions of their stories are displayed on the tech giant's news tab or in its search results. The decision was hailed as a triumph for publishers by those favoring... Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2020-07-08 17:40:51 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #digital content #publisher announced #challenging times #pays tribute #print magazines #sexual orientation #social justice

Majority of small publishers fear closure in wake of coronavirus

Survey shows 60% expect the impact of the pandemic may put them out of business, prompting calls for concerted helpMore than half of the UK’s small publishers fear they could be out of business by the autumn as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, according to research by the Bookseller, which... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2020-05-07 15:02:20 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #bookshop #bookseller #sales drop #work published #coronavirus pandemic

Publishing must ‘wake up to the world beyond the M25’, new report urges

A new report championing working class writers has published today (1st May), recommending better funding for “new collaborations” and the “decentralisation of UK publishing”–including asking more literary agents to move outside the capital–to help promote inclusion. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2020-04-30 13:41:58 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #literary agents #uk publishing

Coronavirus Worklife: Amazon Publishing ‘At Home’ in Germany, the UK, and the States

'Our desk spaces are evolving their own personalities,' as the publishing house built by a tech and retail giant adapts to home-officing. The post Coronavirus Worklife: Amazon Publishing ‘At Home’ in Germany, the UK, and the States appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2020-04-30 01:41:14 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #amazon publishing #coronavirus worklife #states appeared

PubWest to Amazon: Publishing Needs Your Help

PubWest has published an open letter to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos asking him to support independent publishers by placing a moratorium on certain fees and by making books more of a priority for shipping as soon as possible. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-03-30 04:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #making books #open letter

Coronavirus: The Latest Challenge for Toy Makers—and Publishers

The coronavirus is one of the main topics of conversation at the 117th edition of Toy Fair New York, which began on Saturday and runs through Tuesday. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2020-02-24 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #toy fair #main topics #latest challenge

Excuse me: Is Amazon really using this small publisher to try to prove that it’s not evil?

Last night, I was in my third hour of binge-watching The Bold Type when I stumbled upon an ad that made me do a double-take. The ad was for Amazon Storefronts, a section launched in 2018 as a way for small and medium-sized businesses to sell products directly through Amazon. The video’s got... Continue reading at Literrary Hub

[ Literrary Hub | 2020-02-20 17:52:28 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #small publisher #medium-sized businesses #bold type

Amazon Reducing Orders to Publishers

In order to deal with congestion issues at its warehouses, Amazon has been cutting book orders to publishers over the last several weeks, a move publishers say is on track to damage their holiday sales. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2019-11-11 05:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #holiday sales

WPP returns to growth and Facebook News offers publishers ‘free money’: Friday Wake-Up Call

Welcome to Ad Age’s Wake-Up Call, our daily roundup of advertising, marketing, media and digital news. If you're reading this online or in a forwarded email, here's the link to sign up for our Wake-Up Call newsletters. You can get an audio version of this briefing on your Alexa device; sign up... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2019-10-25 10:25:54 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #hearst #parting gift #final season #silicon valley #anthony crupi #profits fell

Stiles joins Amazon Publishing’s global rights team

Hatty Stiles has joined Amazon Publishing’s global rights team as senior rights manager. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-10-21 04:56:01 UTC ]
More news stories like this |

Rankin, Braithwaite and Killing Eve win Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards

Crime heavyweight Ian Rankin, Booker longlisted Braithwaite and "Killing Eve" were among the winners of the 9 Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards on Saturday night. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-09-30 00:14:17 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #amazon publishing

Publishers sue Amazon's Audible over speech-to-text feature

Major US publishers have filed a lawsuit against Amazon's audiobook company Audible in a row over a new speech-to-text feature which they say is a violation of copyright law. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-08-26 15:42:06 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #audiobook #copyright law #speech-to-text feature

The Amazon Publishing Juggernaut

What does the ecommerce giant want with the notoriously fickle world of publishing? To own your every reading decision. Continue reading at The Atlantic

[ The Atlantic | 2019-08-08 17:45:07 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #amazon publishing

The Week’s Big Story: Amazon Publishing on Wooing Dean Koontz

A major release from Patricia Cornwell, new writings from Mindy Kaling, Andy Weir, Blake Crouch, NK Jemisin and more in the wake of APub's Dean Koontz deal. The post The Week’s Big Story: Amazon Publishing on Wooing Dean Koontz appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2019-07-26 06:30:49 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #amazon publishing #andy weir #mindy kaling #patricia cornwell #big story

Braithwaite, Rankin and Wesolowski make Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards shortlist

Booker Prize longlistee Oyinkan Braithwaite has made the shortlist for the 2019 Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards with Ian Rankin and Matt Wesolowski each bagging two nominations. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2019-07-24 09:47:48 UTC ]
More news stories like this | All news stories tagged with: #amazon publishing #ian rankin