Disqus - Latest Comments for dedifelman

Re: A coming new obsession: how to handle a smaller print-book business

dedifelman — Sun, 25 Oct 2009 14:15:27 -0000

Excellent post, Mike. And great comments from Tim. Re #1 and #3: Earlier this winter I was convinced that Apple could have the kind of disruptive force on publishing--and hence attain the kind of dominant position--that it had on the music industry, especially once the Tablet is released. Now I feel much less certain. In favor: as someone working to adapt nonfiction content to take advantage of the new opportunities afforded by the new delivery medium, the Apple Tablet sounds like the game changer we seek. Apple has the potential to get right what so many others have gotten wrong, esp in re: the provision of multimedia and a truly interactive experience. As Nicholas Negroponte would say, interface design and function are key. Apple probably will be the hardware game changer for content (see the enthusiastic response from the comics folks, among others.) But can Apple be the game changer in re: ebook distribution as iTunes was for the music industry? There I personally feel much less sure. There are already a lot of powerful industry players in the ereader biz (see Nook & Kindle) and as many newer players circling (e.g. Microsoft, Plastic Logic). And as Tim points out, there's a powerful constellation of cross-cutting interests at play here complicating Apple's attempts to become the clearcut distributor of choice. 1) Who will make the most consumer friendly device? 2) Who will make the most content-provider friendly device? 3) Who has the best already established online distribution system for books? 4) Who will offer publishers/authors/content providers the most attractive terms and discounts? 5) How powerful might more vertically-based intermediaries continue to be in re the direct-to-consumer market? 6) Who will share customer information with publishers if publishers decide to make this a priority? 7) Who cuts the best deals in the educational market, a clear breeding ground for adult reading habits (a lesson Apple took to heart from the early days of Mac)? In sum, is this a marketplace that will shake down to one dominant distributor/reader or several? I'm a huge admirer of Apple. But the distribution game in publishing is complex, and a lot of people have learned lessons from the music industry. Whether one player will dominate the field or several will cluster at the top is a question I know we'll all be following with avid interest.

Re: Beast Books: a sign of times to come

dedifelman — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 10:40:41 -0000

Ah yes, should have read the answer to Guy a bit more clearly, which does clarify. Sounds like we agree more than I thought from my initial reading of the post. I suspect my sense of which sites could generate fruitful partnerships is a bit more catholic. I don't think the possibilities lie strictly with the more vertical sites like HuffPo, TPM etc. In fact, in many ways, I feel that the more horizontal sites generate many more possibilities. And I'm not sure you can tell which site attracts book buyers from the content on the site. In fact, I might argue that the readers of genre works or bestsellers are as likely to be found on TMZ or Entertainment Weekly as they are on Daily Kos. As with all partnerships, the key is that the match up balances each partner's strengths with each partner's weaknesses, whether they be editorial, sales, marketing, tech etc. Beyond that, I think we could see a lot of interesting pairings. As always, the key will be which model finds the key to profitability, a matter on which the jury is, as you and I are painfully aware, still very much out. Here's to editors and publishers with the backing to experiment and who succeed in the marketplace!

Re: Beast Books: a sign of times to come

dedifelman — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:39:09 -0000

Thanks for the thoughtful post. The Beast Books model is breathtakingly similar to the Magabooks model that I began to propose late last year (thanks to your and many others' input.) See www.nyrm.org under "Features" and then "Introducing the Magabook."

I agree that traditional book publishers have fewer advantages in this model as direct-to-consumer marketing favors those entities that have cultivated direct relationships with their readers rather than those that support large sales forces that focus on concentrated retail relationships. A partnership between companies that bring both sets of relationships to the table has always struck me as the right way to go. I disagree that the Daily Beast has a unique advantage and can see many other partnerships of this type arising. I have proposed some of them myself and I'm sure we'll soon see others in play.

Dedi