In emails to a select group of librarians, Macmillan sought feedback on three alternative schemes. In all three, according to Andrew Albanese, Macmillan’s eight-week embargo would be abandoned.
Catching up with PW's Andrew Albanese
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At January’s ALA Midwinter meeting in Philadelphia, following a contentious “Ask Me Anything” session with librarians, Macmillan CEO John Sargent said he would offer potential alternatives to the publisher’s controversial eight-week embargo on new e-book titles for public libraries.
Late last week, Macmillan made good on Sargent’s statement, reports Andrew Albanese, Publishers Weekly senior writer. In emails to a select group of librarians, Macmillan sought feedback on three alternative schemes. In all three, according to Albanese, Macmillan’s eight-week embargo would be abandoned.
“As Sargent suggested would be the case during his talk at ALA Midwinter, all three proposals include price hikes for new titles in the first weeks of publication, with reduced prices later in a title’s publication cycle,” Albanese tells CCC’s Chris Kenneally.
One proposal, for example, would raise the price of a new release Macmillan e-book to $80 from $60 in the first 8 weeks; after the book has been on the market a year, the price would drop to $50.
“Predictably, librarians aren’t happy about the price hikes as the embargo is replaced by a 33% premium,” Albanese says. “But here’s the thing: All the librarians I spoke to agreed that the proposals resolve the most contentious issue in play here—which is, basic access. In other words, if Macmillan replaced the current eight-week embargo on new titles with an eight-week, $20 premium, as the one proposal does, the basic access issue goes away.”
Every Friday, CCC’s “Beyond the Book” speaks with the editors and reporters of “Publishers Weekly” for an early look at the news that publishers, editors, authors, agents and librarians will be talking about when they return to work on Monday.
