TeleRead: Bring the E-Books Home

Archive for September, 2009

By Paul Biba

Jane Friedman, former CEO of HarperCollins Publishers Worldwide, will be interviewed at a free virtual conference called Digital Content Day @ Your Desk. Here’s some info from the press release.

We’ll be talking about her new e-book venture, the industry’s future and where the opportunities lie for publishers today. We’ll also explore one of the biggest questions facing all publishing executives: How to bridge the gap between the present (print-centric) publishing business and what many predict will be the future (digital).

The event is free to attend, and you can access all of the interviews, presentations and panels without even leaving your office. We also have lined up many other industry-leading speakers for this unique event. I hope you’ll be able to check it out.

Here are a few details:
When: Thursday, October 29, 2009
Keynote Time: 10:30 a.m. (Show Schedule 10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. ET)
Where: Your Computer – It’s Virtual

Register now – again, it’s a free event:
http://www.PublishingBusiness.com/PBVkeynote

By Paul Biba

For all our readers in the UK, you might want to respond to this JISC request. Here it is:

This is your chance to share your views about the Google Book Settlement. Even though the settlement as it stood has been withdrawn, JISC is interested in gathering views from the UK Higher and Further education community in order to help inform JISC’s approach to these issues, both in relation to the future iterations of the Google Book Settlement itself and more broadly. We can assume, even though this has been withdrawn for the time being, that we will see subsequent settlements that affect UK rights holders and have an impact on access to information for education and research. Your response will also help JISC understand any potential implications associated with any possible future European settlement.

Please respond by 26th October 2009.

Thanks to Resource Shelf for the link.

By Paul Biba

I take this directly from Resource Shelf, with permission, because it’s an important post for anyone in the scholarly world.

The September issue of Reviews in History via the The Institute of Historical Research in London offers reviews of four scholarly e-book services.

All four of the e-Book services were reviewed by Mark Herring, Winthrop University. They’re in-depth looks at each product (we’re providing only a snippet) and we strongly suggest reading the complete review.

The reviews are of Gutenberg-e, Humanities E-Books, Oxford Scholarship Online, and Medieval Sources Online (which is the one that especially interests me). I haven’t had time to check them out yet, but I will be doing that soon.

By Paul Biba

In another blow to the publishers of high-priced textbooks, a new initiative is being started on Florida today. Here is the news from Tampabay.com:

… But through a new initiative state university system officials plan to announce today, Florida college students can get digital versions of some of those pricey textbooks for free. Students who really want a print version can order one custom-bound for between $30 and $50 — far cheaper than even many used textbooks.

The project, dubbed Orange Grove Texts Plus, is a partnership involving the University Press of Florida, the state university system’s nonprofit publishing arm; the Virginia publisher Integrated Book Technology; and Orange Grove, the state’s digital database of K-20 teaching material.

So far 124 titles covering a range of subject areas are available digitally, with more being added as scholarly authors sign on to the project. The goal: reduce college students’ annual textbook tab, which can run in excess of $1,200. …

Thanks to Resource Shelf for the link.

By Paul Biba

The site has a first class article (which is nothing new) looking at how Sony is going to attack the Kindle and giving the author’s analysis of its probability of success.

Sony has suddenly woken up to the fact that the eReader market is going to be huge and is making a lot of moves. Look carefully and a pattern begins to emerge with 3 main threads –

1. Attack all of Amazon’s weaknesses – This means being open (for now), going retail, and striking up collaborations.

2. Matching as many of Amazon’s strengths as possible. The tie-up with SmashWords is part of this.

3. Selling an electronic device that happens to read books i.e. focusing on the device.

Sony seems to have decided that eReaders are a market it needs to win and that this holiday season is the time to do it.

By Paul Biba

That’s the title of a PDF prepared by the American Library Association, Association of Research Libraries and the Association of College and Research Libraries. It’s a good summary of who is involved in the actual settlement case (as opposed to just making media noise). Unless you are a party to the case any of your comments will not be considered by the Court, so this is the definitive playlist.

You can find it here.

By Paul Biba

How can publishers thrive, not die, during the e-book revolution? Already Stanford University is shutting down its Publishing Course for Professionals, while it studies the possibility of a successor. Random House, alas, can’t just take a rest.

To help avoid the guillotine, publishing people may want to attend Mediabistro’s eBook Summit on December 15-16—scene of a bunch of related talks. One of the more intriguing topics: “The Business of Free.” Presumably that could mean anything from ad-supported books to the giveaway of the first title in a series, to entice you to buy the others.

Among the speakers will be DailyLit CEO Susan Danziger, Sony’s Digital Reading Business Division President Steve Haber, Lexcycle co-founder Neelan Choksi; Google Books product manager Brandon Badger, author Katty Kay, and Books on Board CEO Bob Livolsi.

If you register by November 18 they are charging $245 and the program will be held in New York City at the New Yorker Hotel. Hopefully we’ll be there to report on the goings on. You can find out all the details here.

By David Rothman

When will the Kindle hit the U.K.? Nate at MR correctly notes how hard it’s been to predict.

That’s in league with forecasting the debut date of the big Apple tablet.

Still, ever-game, our friends at the Bookseller are saying Amazon will make an announcement next week if a source is right. Fodder for the Frankfurt Book Fair?

Also see GalleyCat writeup.

Photo is of a fair-related exhibition hall in Frankfurt—our little attempt to spare you another Kindle shot.

Update, 11:18 a.m.: Just found out that Paul used a Frankfurt shot in the post before this one. Jeez. Can’t win. We’ll leave ‘em both up in honor of the Fair.

By Paul Biba

Here are some of the major ebook related items from the survey of 840 of the participants at the Frankfurt Book Fair:

50 % of industry experts see 2018 as the year when digital content will generate more income than traditional content. 41% think that sales will reach 10% in 2011.

The price for an e-book should be

more expensive than the printed book: 4 per cent

as expensive as the printed book: 15 per cent

10 per cent cheaper than the printed book: 11 per cent

20 per cent cheaper: 17 per cent

30 per cent cheaper: 14 per cent

more than 30 per cent cheaper: 16 per cent

a standard price as with Amazon ($9.99): 15 per cent

other price model: 6 per cent

“The accompanying commentary and the tremendous range of opinions it represents demonstrates just how contested this question really is. It is still completely unclear whether or not E-Books will be used merely as a “second book” for a quick glimpse, or whether portions will, in fact, ultimately be sold as mobile content for a price many times higher than the printed work. Also enlightening is the fact that only 35 per cent of those polled count themselves among e-book readers and only 22 per cent use e-readers. The majority of those polled, however, indicate that they never read e-books (65 per cent). Reading online on the screen of a PC or laptop is, with 65 per cent, preferred unequivocally by those polled over the use of special e-readers or multifunctional handhelds.”

By David Rothman

• Don’t bail out newspapers—Let them die and get out of the way, Daniel Lyons’ essay in Newsweek. Thanks for the pointer from Felix Torres, who adds: “Substitute ‘major publishers’ for ‘newspapers’ and his arguments ring even more true.”
• A Washington Post account mentioning Newsweek’s own travails, by Frank Ahrens.
• Bay Area online news renaissance: 7 pointers forward, in Content Bridges.
• San Diego hyperlocal site launches ‘U.S. local news network, in Local Onliner.

Related: War of the publishing models: Sarah Palin’s pub dreads e-books, while Tina Brown’s news partner gets nimble with E.

Image: From Wikipedia.

By David Rothman

While e-books get a good dissin’ at Apple’s site touting apps, here’s a day-brightener.

The new Apple tablets will “expand the iPhone and iPod touch media concept to its next potential level: as a slate-like replacement for books and magazines, plus all of the media, gaming, app, and web functionality of the iPhone and iPod touch.”

So says iLounge in Ten New Details on the Apple Tablet, inspiring a spate of follow-up reports.  Apple “is currently planning to announce” the tablet “on or before January 19, 2010, and to use an iPhone-like hype buildup period to start selling it in May or June.”

iLounge also tells us:: ”Screen resolutions will obviously jump considerably from the iPhone and iPod touch 480×320-pixel displays, enabling easy reading of full-sized book and magazine pages, plus cropped newspaper pages. Expect something like 5-6 times the resolution of an iPod touch or iPhone screen (720p or thereabouts) and 7 times the touchable surface area.”

In addition, iLounge says: “It will come in two different variations: one with 3G networking capabilities, and one without 3G networking capabilities. Think of the 3G version as a bigscreen iPhone 3GS, and the non-3G version as a bigscreen iPod touch.”

(more…)

By David Rothman

Apple’s new Apps for Everything site comes with categories ranging from Apps for Cooks to Apps for Working Out.

But I don’t see an e-book category, not even a subcategory within Apps for Fun and Games.

What the devil? Is this part of Steve Jobs’ master plan to con us into thinking that Apple won’t do e-books—-which I’m convinced it will, indirectly, though a multiuse tablet?

Come think of it, didn’t Apple promote an e-book app in a TV commercial?

Wait. There is an e-book mention within Apps for Everything, but it’s hidden within Apps for Keeping Current—merely a link to the popular Stanza app. I also see a few items within Apps for Students. But what about major AWOL e-book apps, including the one for Kindle e-books? If I were Amazon or eReader or B&N or Shortcovers, etc., I’d get on the phone now to the comatose marketers at Apple.

(Via Techmeme.)

By David Rothman

Sarah Palin’s new book will appear in print on November 17, but not in E until December 26, the day after Christmas, so e-books won’t steal away p-book sales.

But as Kassia Krozer wonders, is that really true about E? And wouldn’t Harper make more money with E piggybacking on the initial publicity for P?

Meanwhile, smartly moving in the opposite direction, the Daily Beast’s Tina Brown (right photo) and Perseus are teaming up to get newsy books out in E first. Initial title? Attack of the Wingnuts: How the Lunatic Fringe Is Hijacking America, by CNN commentator John P. Avlon. A reference to some of Palin’s fans?

If the Daily Beast approach catches on, could one side effect be to hurt PW and some of the more snailish book reviewers the newspaper world?  And some at other mags? Certain members of the reviewing establishment are used to taking months to review books.

By Paul Biba

Jessamyn, at librarian.net, has a very depressing listing of all the sites that should be promoting Banned Books Week – but aren’t. Read it and weep:

As usual, I clicked through from the ALA web page to the home pages of all the organizations who are co-sponsors of Banned Books Week. Here’s what I found.

The American Booksellers Association mentions BBW and offers a broken link to more information about it

The American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression is still offering its handbook from 2007

The American Society for Journalists and Authors appears pretty busy opposing the Google settlement to mention BBW.

The Association of American Publishers mentions that they are gearing up for this event, but not enough to really mention it on their website otherwise.

National Association of College Stores has nothing, as usual

LoC’s Center for the Book has one of the most awesome URLs ever and no mention of Banned Books Week that I can see.

Even ALA’s home page doesn’t mention Banned Books Week except on page six of their slide show where they tell us what we can buy to support it.

By Paul Biba

This could be a useful report for the librarians among us who have to make some hard decisions about when to retain hard copy after a journal has been digitized. You can find all the details here.

Determining the value of retaining print after its digitization requires a system-wide analysis of the needs of all libraries and their users collectively, rather than focusing only on a region, a system, or a consortium,” stated Roger Schonfeld, Manager of Research at Ithaka S+R and co-author of this report. “Our analysis indicates that libraries today can safely de-accession certain print holdings that are adequately preserved in digital and print form elsewhere.

… Based on this analysis, the report concludes that certain print journal backfile sets are well enough digitized and contain few enough images that there is likely to be virtually no demand for them by users, and are sufficiently well preserved digitally and in print repositories that libraries can responsibly withdraw their own print holdings.

By Paul Biba

It certainly seems that an incredible resource has opened up. During October all content will be free and then it will be free at any NARA computer and fee-based for 5 years if you are not using a NARA computer. From Resource Shelf:

Starting today, hundreds of thousands of Holocaust-related documents will be searchable online through an agreement between the National Archives and Records Administration and Footnote.com.

NARA officials said the massive collection of records about looted assets, concentration camp registers and proceedings of the Nuremberg war crime trials will form part of the Web’s largest interactive collection of Holocaust records. The release of the initial 500,000 images of individual documents will make research easier and greatly increase access. …

Included among the National Archives records available online at Footnote.com are:

+ Concentration camp registers and documents from Dachau, Mauthausen, Auschwitz, and Flossenburg
+ The “Ardelia Hall Collection” of records relating to the Nazi looting of Jewish possessions, including looted art
+ Captured German records including deportation and death lists from concentration camps
+ Nuremberg War Crimes Trial proceedings

By David Rothman

The guy in the picture is reading from a Kindle “in the shadow of the great New York Public Library.”

But “old-fashioned library books still reign supreme” there.

Could that change? Maybe if librarians will take time to learn the technology, and about specific machine. They’re stretched thin, many of them. But maybe a new Kindle library wiki will help, as a way for librarians to share tips and save time.

The Kindle Library Home is a joint project of Duke Medical Center Library and Texas A&M Medical Library. Medicine and med-ed are priorities. there. But ideally the Wiki will also enlighten public librarians and those in many other areas. Give it a chance and help out.

The project’s FAQ presently is sparse but already takes a stab at such basic questions as, “How can I make sure that patrons cannot purchase books on the library account?” It would be wonderful if a copyright lawyer could jump in with advice since Amazon’s terms of service are rather problematic for libraries.

Library e-book list

Latecomers might also want to catch up with a separate e-mail list for librarians dealing with ebooks. This covers all brands of machines, not just Kindles. I mentioned the list before, but this bears repeating.

In other Kindle news…

If you extrapolate from a survey, Kindle ownership could reach 10M units in 12 months. Get the details, gang, and tell me what you think of the numbers and the logic (via Jon Noring and Paul Allen). I’m skeptical, given all the competition Amazon will face, not just from other e-reader makers but rival form factors such as netbooks. But who knows?

Image: CC-licensed photo by Ed Yourdon.