[OPLIN 4cast] OPLIN 4Cast #220: Turbulent times for publishers

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OPLIN 4Cast

OPLIN 4Cast #220: Turbulent times for publishers
March 9th, 2011

<http://www.oplin.org/4cast/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/turbulent_times.png>No 
doubt about it, libraries are going through some very tough 
times right now. On top of draconian budget cuts, they have 
to deal with the latest anti-library antics of Those Dang 
Publishers. We tend to forget, however, that these are also 
very tough times for those publishers, as they watch the 
business models they have relied on for years become 
obsolete in the march toward new digital media and new 
distribution methods. For example, they face business 
pressure to sell their e-books through "agencies," while at 
the same time facing legal pressure when they do. In today's 
/4cast/, we share a potpourri of recent writings that 
illustrate some of the new stresses on the old publishing 
industry.

    * Monetizing the book buying experience
      <http://sheilabounford.blogspot.com/2011/03/monetizing-book-buying-experience.html>
      (Off the Page/Sheila Bounford) "Of course not everyone
      behaves on impulse, and consumers do not have an
      obligation to buy in store. Those from outside the
      book industry do not necessarily feel a responsibility
      to support their local shop if the prices there are
      higher than online. In a recession customers are much
      more likely to browse, and then go home and buy online
      to save money. The key questions therefore are how
      else can physical bookstores monetize what they offer?
      And, should publishers be much more proactive in
      supporting them through increased discounts and other
      measures?"
    * Random House caves on agency e-book pricing
      <http://arstechnica.com/media/news/2011/03/random-house-caves-on-agency-e-book-pricing-may-join-ibooks-soon.ars>
      (Ars Technica/Jacqui Cheng) "Under the wholesale
      model, publishers like Random House would sell a
      certain number of books to a reseller (such as Amazon)
      for a set price, then the reseller would set its own
      price on each book. This works out well for the sale
      of physical books that have to be shipped, but not so
      much for e-books, where there are infinite copies. The
      agency model, by comparison, allows publishers to set
      their own prices for e-books and give 30 percent of
      the sale price to the reseller."
    * EU raids ebook publishers in price fixing
      investigation
      <http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2011/mar/04/ebooks-publishing>
      (Guardian/Benedicte Page and Leigh Phillips) "The
      focus for the price-fixing investigation is understood
      to be what is called the agency model, which has been
      adopted by almost all the biggest publishers for their
      ebook sales. This is distinct from the traditional
      wholesale model, in which retailers buy the books from
      the publisher and can then do what they wish with
      them. Under the agency model, the retailer acts as an
      agent of the publisher, which itself sets the retail
      price of the ebooks, with the retailer taking a
      commission. Publishers see the agency model as crucial
      because it allows them to trade with Apple, which was
      already using it for iTunes, and also to control the
      price at which their ebooks are sold."
    * Gannett unveils image 'reset'
      <http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20110307/BIZ/103070320/Gannett-unveils-image-reset->
      (USA Today/David Lieberman) "[CEO Craig] Dubow said he
      wants advertisers and others to see that Gannett
      [news] properties attract local and national audiences
      via different media, including the Internet,
      smartphones and tablet computers such as Apple's iPad.
      To help make that point, the company's properties will
      begin to prominently identify themselves as part of
      Gannett. In addition, the company will launch a
      national advertising campaign that includes the
      tagline, 'It's all within reach.'"

*/Profit fact:/*

ECKO Publishing provides a handy online tool 
<http://www.eckohousepublishing.com/66/Digital-E-book-Profit-Calculator/> 
for publishers to figure their profit on e-books distributed 
through various agencies, as well as some interesting agency 
rules publishers must follow.
------------------------------------------------------------
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