HarperCollins Targets Readers! Not Returns. Not Retailers. Gasp
What She Said Wasn’t That Bad
Both Mathew Ingram and TechCrunch came down hard on Tracy Chevalier — and the Society of Authors — for saying writers wanted to chuck the old business models and adopt new ones. Arrington and Ingram know a luddite when they see one. Chevalier qualifies in their minds for pointing out the obvious –
- digital sources are replacing physical sources esp. for recipes and reference works
- the digital sources tend to be free (wikipedia)
- publishers are (for the most part) sitting on their hands
- it is of no advantage to writers to wait around until the houses figure it out (see music industry)
I applaud Chevalier for saying as much. We need new business models. We need to experiment.
Ask And You Shall Receive
Not a week passes. HarperCollins announces it is experimenting with a new business model. The reaction is similiarly mishapen (see below). Harper isn’t cutting costs or squeezing writers. They are screwing the retailers. They are going direct to the readers. Hooray! Focusing on “internet ventures” really means focusing on readers. They are going direct. How can that be a bad thing?
The announcement is light on details (no product and no business model are mentioned) but bravo to Harper for assembling an X team to think it through.
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