The medium is the message coming loud and clear from the music industry’s year-over-year numbers: customers will pay for quick access or premium quality.
Mr. Postman, Bring Me a Book
In this age of email, texts and other non-tangible communiques, I doubt I’m alone in finding happiness when something is mailed to my abode that is not a) a bill b) a flyer for some terrifying new delivery place opening in my neighbourhood. My happiness increases 10-fold when that thing is reading material that I’ve been anxiously anticipating.
As of now, I subscribe only to magazines but when I saw Publishers Weekly story on the new subscription model being tried by Open Letter Books, my eyes did that cartoon poppy-outy thing. Subscription to an entire list? How awesome is that.
Keep the Sales Rep, Lose the Paper Waste
Books Make Great Gifts Part Deux
Honest to POD: Random Collection
Starting in January, Random House will be selling new copies of out-of-print books via a new e-commerce website called the Random Collection. The site will start with 750 titles, will be searchable and allow for feedback from booksellers and other customers on suggestions for future titles.
Some, like Joseph Esposito at Publishing Frontier and Mike Shatzkin at IdeaLogical, have suggested that this plan doesn’t work if the goal is brand-extension.
Random House to Digitize Thousands More Books
The Associated Press reports on Random House’s plan to expand their eBook offerings from 8,000 to 15,000 titles.
The E-Book Specialist This Way Comes
Random House Changes E-Book Royalty Structure
Digitization Is Like Global Warming (eep!): Mark Logic
New E-Textbook Model Helps Students and Publishers
The University of Texas is trying out a new e-textbook initiative that they say could “fundamentally change the industry”.
