By Edward Nawotka “I believe there is significant potential for English language e-books on the international markets,” David Steinberger, president and publisher of Perseus Book Group, told us last month during an interview at the Digital Book World publishing conference. “What you have to understand is there has always been demand, even in non-English speaking countries. The publishers have tried …
Publishing Intel from RAND Corporation
By Daniel Kalder SANTA MONICA: For over 60 years now the RAND Corporation has carried out research and analysis for governments, organizations, and institutions around the world. Famously, it was the work of Dr. Herman Kahn — a RAND employee –- that provided the seed for the military doctrine of Mutually Assured Destruction (Kahn was lampooned by Peter Sellers in …
Should Authors Drive Enhanced E-book Innovation?
By Edward Nawotka In today’s lead story about RAND Corporation’s publishing program, RAND marketing director John Warren says, in reference to enhanced e-books: The author has the vision; the publisher has the marketing perspective. He goes on to say that the motivation for producing an enhanced e-book really starts with the author. Do you agree? Current publishing contracts may be …
It’s Elemental: Touch Press at the Vanguard of Enhanced E-books
By Roger Tagholm LONDON: Digital books can boost the sales of their physical equivalents, but success in the digital arena will only come to those publishers that form “deep, serious partnerships”, according to Max Whitby, CEO of new, west London-based digital start-up Touch Press. “It’s no good publishers coming along and saying well here’s some technical people who can do …
Is the UK Ahead of the US in Enhancing E-books?
By Edward Nawotka Enhanced e-books are a hot topic in publishing. So far, I think, our imagination has outpaced our ability to execute and there have been few steller examples of how publishers can harness recent technological change to advance books as they appear in digital formats. One of the few examples that has really worked is London-based Touch Press’s …
Tell Us about Your Favorite Transmedia Projects
By Edward Nawotka Transmedia has been a buzz word in publishing since at least 2003, but it’s one that’s still ill-defined. The creators of Inanimate Alice, as discussed in today’s editorial, describe it as “multimodality using images, sounds, text, interaction . . . to see storytelling in a new, multi-sensory light.” It is something bigger and more interactive than an …
New Zealand’s Kiwa Media Pioneers Multi-lingual, Multi-media (and Maori) E-books for Children
By Edward Nawotka AUCKLAND: Looking for an enhanced e-book that you can read in English, Spanish, Japanese, Italian Chinese or . . . Maori? Kiwa Media, a software developer in Auckland, New Zealand has has what you need. Throughout 2010, Kiwa Media has launched some fifteen enhanced e-books for children -– dubbed QBooks –- that function like typical illustrated e-books, …
Take our Enhanced E-book Survey
By Hannah Johnson Inspired by today’s discussion question, “Which E-book Enhancements Do You Prefer?” (and some interesting comments about integrating Google Earth into e-books), we have set up a new, two-part survey. We’re asking you to tell us which e-book enhancements you think are the best. If you don’t see your favorite enhancement on this list, leave a comment! The …
Which E-book Enhancements Do You Prefer?
By Edward Nawotka Today’s lead article reveals that just 7% of the 600 publishers surveyed by Aptara are enhancing e-books. Enhancements can take a variety of forms. Some involve the use of multimedia, such as audio narration and film clips embedded in the text. Others are more simple, such as the inclusion of authors interviews, reading club questions and sample …
Just 7% of Publishers Enhancing E-books, Among Findings in New Aptara E-book Survey
By Edward Nawotka Digital service provider Aptara released the second in a series of surveys tracking the development of the e-book market. This new survey covered some 600 publishers across trade, professional and education markets. Dev Ganesan, Aptara’s President and CEO, noted in the press release about the survey, “With a desire to meet the growing expectations of digitally-savvy readers, …