All Episodes
Amazon To Authors – Take The Whole Enchilada
The offer sounded almost too good to be true, but the reports on Tuesday were from reliable sources. Caught in a publicity fire-fight with Hachette Book Group authors and publishers, Amazon appealed to one of the parties for peace. The online shopping giant had...
When Authors Rule
In 2014, the author has ascended the throne of scientific and scholarly publishing. With the rise of Open Access business models, authors today are much more than a source of content — they've become paying customers! It's time publishers understand what it means when...
Best of BTB: The “New” Agents
For the book business in 2014, everything is new – for proof, turn to the news media, which breathlessly covers the breaking stories as if filing dispatches from a war. Self-publishing particularly receives attention, and is often pitched as a David and Goliath tale....
IndieFab Book Awards Announced
Like parenting, independent publishing isn’t something you do for the recognition and the rewards. And just like Moms and Dads anywhere, indie publishers will forego dividends for their own hard work so long as their progeny get along in the world. At the...
Hachette Buys Perseus Books
That faint odor in the air for the book business is the scent of consolidation. This week, the wind of change blew in for Perseus Books Group, and then it blew out as Hachette Livre. In recent weeks, Hachette has appeared regularly in trade news headlines, mostly for...
Publishing Gone Digital
Publishers face unique challenges in today’s digital environment, and nowhere more sharply than the efforts made to harmonize copyright on a global scale. From Geneva, RightsDirect’s Mitja Linss speaks to Jens Bammel, International Publishers Association (IPA)...
The Librarian in the Digital Age
In the latest edition of Copyright Worldwide, Ryan Jones, Senior Director at Copyright Clearance Center, offers insights on the changing role of the librarian in the digital age. With growing reliance among workers on “self-service” when it comes to their information...
Ghosting Ethics
Do you believe in ghosts? Many of the nation’s leading executives and entrepreneurs certainly do – as well as top athletes, Hollywood stars, and of course, politicians. If communication isn’t your strong suit, then you may believe in ghosts, too. Ghostwriting, of...
Apple Settles In E-Book Price-fixing Case
News in the Apple e-book price-fixing case this week was made outside Judge Denise Cote’s courthouse. On Tuesday, plaintiffs from several states, as well as the consumer class, announced a proposed settlement with the Cupertino, California computer maker. This latest...
Picking Sides in Hachette-Amazon “War”
At BookExpo America last month, the buzz at the show wasn’t about any new titles or even any new apps, but about the bareknuckle brawl between Amazon and Hachette over eBook pricing. Now available at Soundcloud.com/BeyondtheBook is a new series of Beyond the Book...
The Future of Reading
Looking ahead to the American Libraries Association annual conference in Las Vegas later this month, Andrew Albanese takes stock of efforts by ALA’s Digital Content Working Group to influence the future direction of reading. “Formed three years ago when the library...
Hey, Author: You’re Promoted to CEO
As the independent publishing boom swells further, more authors are seizing the opportunity to take control of their writing careers. And while that move may offer potential for greater financial reward and even greater personal satisfaction, it means more work, too....