Day: September 27, 2010

Go Read This | Ebooks Don’t Cannibalize Print, People Do « Black Plastic Glasses

~ Eoin Purcell ~ 2 Comments

I disagree with some of this, in fact with a lot of it, though it does seem that when Evan describes the mechanics of those who have moved to digital reading, he is on the money!

While I see the logic behind this understanding – I posit a slightly more nuanced definition of what is happening: Ebooks aren’t cannibalizing print books — consumers with ebook reading devices are, as a rule, no longer buying print books. Subtle? Yes, but from a commercial publishing point of view this is a crucial difference between seeing a direct correlation between ebooks and print books and understanding what happens to a customer when they make the switch to reading devices.

via Ebooks Don’t Cannibalize Print, People Do « Black Plastic Glasses.

Go Read This | David Worlock | Developing digital strategies for the information marketplace | Supporting the migration of information providers and content players into the networked services world of the future.

~ Eoin Purcell ~ Leave a comment

David is so often on the money, and he nails it here, but crucially the first quote I’ve pulled is only part of the story:

In consumer publishing it is really hard to find examples of players once great in print who are now able to operate in network terms with a similar facility .

There’s much more more:

I also feel that the portfolio days of B2B have drawn to a close. Investing in disparate service elements in niche markets no longer adds sufficient value to be justified , and if the future really is around workflow emulation, as this column has been suggesting, then the niche positions do not cut it without a great deal more content and software.

via David Worlock | Developing digital strategies for the information marketplace | Supporting the migration of information providers and content players into the networked services world of the future..

Go Read This | The Asymmetry of Waste in the Age of Abundance — A Reversal of Scarcity’s Balance « The Scholarly Kitchen

~ Eoin Purcell ~ Leave a comment

Great piece on scarcity, abundance, content and strategy, or at least the thinking necessary to get there!

The asymmetry of choice in the age of scarcity allowed providers to define the available choices. Now, consumers choose from a myriad of sources and versions. Any asymmetry they may experience in the future could be the asymmetry-of-choice — controls they impose for their own convenience, not for the convenience of producers. This creates uncertain demand for providers, and the move toward a more efficiently utilized information environment will have huge effects on all our familiar aggregations, packages, and delays.

The Asymmetry of Waste in the Age of Abundance — A Reversal of Scarcity’s Balance « The Scholarly Kitchen.