Escape from Amazon

Aug 8, 2014 | News

It sounds like the title of a summer blockbuster movie. Trapped in the e-commerce jungle, the denizens of the book world dream of liberation, even as they while away the time weaving fantasies of an alternate universe: a place where Amazon plays nice; a place where...

Amazon to Publishers – Spread the Wealth

Aug 1, 2014 | News

We’re fighting for you. That’s what Amazon told authors this week as the public battle between the retail giant and Hachette Book Group continued. In a post on Amazon’s Kindle Forums, the Seattle company says consumers should pay less for e-books, and authors deserve...

Robots Go To Journalism School

Jul 27, 2014 | News

In science fiction, robots make lightning fast calculations and have superhuman strength. From “Forbidden Planet” to “2001: A Space Odyssey,” the robots of cinema have played a wide range of roles – as friends and as enemies to humankind. But...

The Wheels of the Amazon Bus Go Round

Jul 25, 2014 | News

If the book business were a big yellow school bus, the driver would be a bald fellow wearing a wide grin. More even than before, Jeff Bezos and Amazon have the wheel, while publishers and authors hang on for a rough ride. In particular, speculation about the end game...

Amazon A Busy Negotiator

Jul 18, 2014 | News

When Les Moonves, President and CEO of CBS Corporation, the owners of Simon & Schuster, let slip that the Big 5 house was in pricing talks with Amazon, the media world did its best to react with shock. Any expression of surprise, however, could only have been for...

Copyright and the Aereo Decision

Jul 13, 2014 | Copyright, News

In one corner stood the leading US television broadcast companies together; and in the other opposite corner facing them alone was Aereo, a well-funded startup company that was offering paid subscribers the ability to watch broadcast television in almost-real time...

Amazon To Authors – Take The Whole Enchilada

Jul 11, 2014 | News

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...

IndieFab Book Awards Announced

Jun 29, 2014 | News

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

Jun 27, 2014 | News

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...

Apple Settles In E-Book Price-fixing Case

Jun 20, 2014 | News

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...