CRM News: Publishing

Who's Afraid of a Big Bad Hacking Story?
May 07, 2012

It's been a cheerily good spring for FOSS fans here in the Linux blogosphere, so we may perhaps be forgiven for our utter shock and disbelief at the affront recently committed against us by a certain brick-and-mortar purveyor of books and magazines. Barnes & Noble yanked the very excellent Linux Format magazine from its U.S. shelves -- apparently because of a cover story on the topic of "hacking."

Microsoft Carves a Notch in Nook
May 01, 2012

Microsoft on Monday said it will pay $300 million to get a piece of Barnes & Noble's Nook tablet action for the Windows 8 platform. The two companies will partner in a new Barnes & Noble subsidiary which will push further into the education market. Barnes & Noble will initially create a Nook app for Windows 8.

Apple's Wall Street Winning Streak Hits a Pothole
April 18, 2012

Apple's weeks-long roll on Wall Street went off the rails this week and last as share prices significantly dropped over a five-day period, jumping back to life Tuesday. The stock dipped to US$580.13 at Monday's close, down 9.9 percent from its highest point of $644 on April 10. It was the fifth consecutive day of decline for the company.

The People vs. Apple
April 14, 2012

Apple has been accused of acting as ringleader of a price-fixing racket, enlisting half a dozen market-dominating companies in a conspiracy to profiteer through anticompetitive practices and artificial price inflation. The market: e-books. The U.S. DoJ sued Apple along with a handful publishers, accusing them of orchestrating a sales agreement that effectively changed the business model under which e-books were sold.

Apple May Slip the DoJ's Noose
April 13, 2012

Odds are Apple will beat the antitrust lawsuit filed Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Justice against the iPad maker and a half dozen publishers. Three of the publishers named in the lawsuit settled with the DoJ immediately. However, the other defendants, including Apple, have vowed to grapple with the feds in court. The DoJ alleges that Apple and the publishers conspired to raise retail e-book prices.

Feds Slam Apple and Publishers With E-Book Price-Fixing Charges
April 11, 2012

The United States Department of Justice filed suit on Wednesday against Apple and several book publishers over what it claims is a conspiracy to raise retail e-book prices and limit competition in e-book sales. The defendants changed the business model governing the relationship between publishers from the wholesale model to an agency model, the DoJ alleged.

Your Company, Your Product, Your Book
April 05, 2012

Books and e-books are becoming the No. 1 sales and marketing tool for many small and mid-sized businesses. Large companies have successfully used them for years, but they were much more expensive and took much longer to produce. Now print on demand and e-books are transforming the space, allowing every company the same opportunity. I recently learned this as a number of CEOs have contacted me to discuss writing books for them and their companies.

Google Guns for Facebook With Third-Party Comment Platform
March 28, 2012

Google is reportedly planning to launch its own third-party commenting system soon. It will apparently be tied into its Google+ social platform, its Web services and the company's Web search products. Google, according to reports, will make the platform available to third parties in much the same way Facebook offers its platform.

Newspapers May Find Salvation in Mobile Apps
March 19, 2012

Despite 17 percent growth in monthly unique users at the top news sites in 2011, revenue remained an issue, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center's Project for Excellence in Journalism, which cites data from Nielsen Online. Online advertising grew by 23 percent in 2011, but just five big tech companies now account for about half of all display ad revenue, notes Pew in "The State of the News Media 2012."

Iran Likely Suspect in Cyberattacks Against BBC
March 15, 2012

The BBC was the target of hack attacks earlier this month, according to comments made by BBC Director-General Mark Thompson in a wide-ranging speech to the Royal Television Society on Wednesday. There was a simultaneous attempt to jam two different satellite feeds of BBC Persian into Iran, and to disrupt BBC's London telephone lines via multiple automatic calls, he said. There was also a sophisticated cyberattack on the news service.

DoJ May Foil Apple, Publishers' E-Book Pricing Plot
March 08, 2012

The United States Justice Department is reportedly investigating Apple and five of the largest U.S. publishers, accusing the companies of colluding to control the price of electronic books. The five publishing companies facing DoJ action include Simon & Schuster, Hachette Book Group; Penguin Group (USA); Macmillan; and HarperCollins. Several of the parties reportedly have held talks to settle the antitrust case and avoid a potentially damaging court battle.

Google Play Tears Page From Apple Playbook
March 07, 2012

Google tore down the silos around its app, music, movie and ebook stores Tuesday and melded them into a single outlet called "Google Play." The move emulates Apple's highly successful iTunes model. "It was arguably an inevitable move," said IDC Analyst Bob O'Donnell.

Can the Nook Find Its Niche?
February 21, 2012

Barnes & Noble released a new Nook Tablet Tuesday, shaving US$50 off the price and reducing the storage by half. The new price, $199, matches Amazon's Kindle Fire. The new Nook emulates the Fire on a number of fronts -- price and 8 GB storage. The new Nook comes with a 1 GHz dual-core processor and a slot for a microSD card that will hold up to 32 GB.

Turbulent Waters Ahead for Amazon?
February 17, 2012

A Morgan Stanley analyst has cut his rating on Amazon to equal weight from overweight. The reason? Mounting near-term challenges that mean 2012 will be a year of transition for the stock. Generally, the company is a long-term supporter of Amazon, Scott Devitt wrote, and it remains a long-term supporter. However, there are near-term trends the company must address, and soon, he said.

Content Intent, Part 3
February 11, 2012

The dissemination of content throughout the Web has forced companies and marketing firms to rethink how they advertise. The swell of venues that are housing content has dueling effects: It increases the potential reach of an advertisement but also dilutes the customer pool for the original publisher.

How the E-Book Is Reinventing the Book Business
February 09, 2012

What do Amazon's Kindle, Barnes & Noble's Nook and Apple's iPad have in common? What about authors like Stephen King, Barbara Freethy, C.J. Lyons, Amanda Hocking and Michael Prescott? If you said they represent the changing book publishing industry, you would be right. The book business is going through a major transformation. Who will the winners and losers be among publishers, stores and authors?

Amazon May Be Going Small With Retail Boutique Experiment
February 07, 2012

Amazon is planning to launch a retail store in Seattle in the coming months, according to reports published by Bloomberg and Good E-Reader. The endeavor is meant to serve as a pilot project for a possible chain of stores that would sell Amazon Exclusive books, as well as its Kindle Fire tablet, line of e-readers, and related accessories.

Content Intent, Part 2
February 03, 2012

It can be a little tricky talking about how and why media outlets allow, and indeed encourage, the diffusion of their content throughout the Web. For starters, people tend to be tightlipped about this strategy. No one from CNN, Fox News, MSNBC or Viacom agreed to speak on the record for this article. They are, apparently, much less eager to discuss sharing content than they are to actually share it.