EDITORIAL
(from January 03 issue)
A busy new year
No time to relax and recover from the holiday
as the London Book Fair is coming up fast. As you can see from
the cover story on ePub and the piece on the BA/LBF Trade Forum,
we already need to start planning our time at the Fair to ensure
that we make the most of it.
As Siberian weather hits London we have a timely article on
page eight. John Whitley, Chief Executive of The Publishing
Training Centre, tells us of a trip to meet Siberian publishers
and his disappointment over the relatively mild weather he encountered.
We are just working on the annual audit of our circulation for
2002 and though we are disappointed at the monthly circulation
not passing 6,000, it has still shown healthy growth again this
year.
This issue almost holds our record for the number of publishing
vacancies with 40 jobs on offer. Is it just the time of year,
or is there some scope for optimism?
Paul
Thorne
Audited
circulation for 6 months to 31st December 2001. Average circulation
per issue of 5,370.
Book
People is published by Chappell Thorne
16 Chilham Way, Bromley, Kent BR2 7PR
Telephone: 020 8462 5000 • Fax: 020 8462 9993
ISDN: 020 8462 8076
Email: bookpeople@chappell-thorne.com
Sub
Editor: Paula Arkell
Production: Liz Bingold
Advertising Sales: Jenny Kearl
© 2003 by Chappell Thorne. All rights reserved. No part
of this publication may be reproduced, stored in any retrieval
system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the
prior written permission of the publisher.
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ePUBLONDON
LOOKING FORWARD TO 3RD YEAR
ePub
chairman, Tony Feldman outlines the key issues that the two-day
conference in March will tackle.
This unmissable annual conference tracks, analyses and demystifies
the impacts of change and development in electronic publishing.
We have an exciting and thought-provoking programme this year,
based on a flexible structure that allows you to enjoy some
or all of its parts, depending on your time and inclination.
In case you are one of the growing band that shudders when they
see any word with the letter ‘e’ in front of it,
be assured that despite its name, ePub does not restrict itself
to matters purely digital. While its starting premise is the
unstoppable transition of published information, entertainment
and education from the analogue to the digital domain, ePub
also looks at the increasing impacts of digital transitions
on the traditional processes of book publishing.
So, whether your business is already moving decisively towards
reinterpreting and delivering your products digitally or whether
your markets remain firmly traditional with print-on-paper your
mainstay, this conference is both relevant and important. ePub’s
real subject matter is not electronic publishing at all. Its
focus is publishing - the multi-faceted industry that we have
all long known and loved - and the ways in which we need to
adapt our businesses in the face of irreversible change in our
markets, underlying work processes, supply chain relationships
and in the wider publishing environment.
As in previous years, ePub rejects theoretical discussion and
abstract analysis. Our event is a business gathering for serious
business people. Your time is money and we must deliver sessions
that give you concrete paybacks. Accordingly, we examine key
issues with an emphasis on sessions rooted in practicalities
and mini-case studies that sift the results of actual publishing
experience. The voice you will hear at ePub is that of an industry
at work, grappling with new and complex issues that balance
the need for delivering short term, bottom line results with
a shrewd, realistic strategic positioning for the long term
(and predominantly digital) future.
Four
distinct sessions
To reflect the underlying logic of the challenges and opportunities
facing us, this year’s programme is founded on four major
building blocks, each represented by a major, half-day session.
We begin with a morning looking at key markets such as eLearning,
academic publishing and the subset of B2B publishing that examines
the best models for selling content into existing legacy structures
within client organisations. This is followed by an afternoon
of report, analysis and example focused on the ways we are increasingly
having to reshape the basic processes of our businesses to stay
competitive for the long term. In this session, we revisit the
fundamentals of content management, digital rights management
and take a hard look at the potential power of putting digital
channels into the marketing mix. We also revisit the fast-moving
developments of underlying standards that will ultimately unleash
so much of the power of digitally-enabled commerce.
The second day opens with a morning dissecting change and development
in that most critical (and controversial) component of our industry:
the supply chain and the internal relationships that define
it. As well as giving you an overview of current impacts on
supply chain dynamics, we will also examine the future of online
bookselling, the current state and the commercial significance
of print-on-demand technologies and business models and, lastly,
the evolution of relationships among publishers, authors and
agents that will ultimately define our access to the mainstay
of our businesses: content.
Finally, ePub concludes with a provocative, energising afternoon
of future gazing. But it does not merely do so because the future
is intriguing and exciting but because it is highly relevant
to the business planning we undertake today. The threat this
last session addresses is the possibility that we may build
publishing strategies that are appropriate for the digital environments
of today, while neglecting the huge and revolutionary transformations
that are imminent.
Join us at Olympia for a vibrant, challenging and entertaining
two days, full of insights and practical feedback. Meet and
compare notes with colleagues from publishing businesses from
all over the world. And, perhaps most important of all, share
in the competitive advantage that staying close to the latest
developments delivers.
To contact Tony Feldman, Chairman, EPub 2003, email: tony@tonyfeldman.com
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GREAT
AUTUMN FLOOD TRADE FORUM
The BA/LBF Trade Forum has been rescheduled for the
16 March 2003 at the Olympia Exhibition Centre, 5pm to 7.30pm,
followed by a drinks reception sponsored by Publishing News.
The forum will be posing the question of why publishers insist
on forcing the bulk of their bestsellers into their autumn lists?
This hottest of hot topics will cover:
m How can booksellers cope with desperate decisions regarding
stocking and rejecting excellent titles in the run up to Christmas?
m How is this impacting on the bottom line of publishers and
booksellers of all sizes?
m Can we continue to grow the market in this climate?
The event is sponsored by Bertram Books and Nielsen BookData
and the registration fee is £50 plus VAT per person.
To receive an application form please contact Shereen Murray or
visit the website www.londonbookfair.co.uk to download an application
form.
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PIRA
CONFERENCE ON 'MARKETING IN PUBLISHING'
PIRA is holding its 'Marketing for Publishers' conference
on Wednesday 29 and Thursday 30 January, 2003 at the Tower Thistle
Hotel, London. A half day workshop on Generating Revenue Through
The Internet is on Friday 31 January, 2003
This conference will provide invaluable insights into how your
marketing strategy can be improved, including looking at best
practice in managing tight budgets, methods for conducting and
acting effectively on consumer research, using the internet
as a marketing resource and to generate revenue. Central themes
will be illustrated through informative case studies from leading
publishers across all sectors of the industry.
Highlights include a case study on managing customer information
from the Telegraph Group, issues in the STM market presented
by Elsevier Science and user-generated content from Rough Guides.
Trinity Mirror will discuss best practice in designing an effective
marketing strategy, Bloomsbury will present its perspective
on marketing online and Hammicks Bookshops will discuss how
publishers can market successfully to and through the retailer.
This event will provide attendees with the opportunity to learn
about the variety of marketing strategies currently being used
across the industry and those to be implemented in the future.
The conference will therefore be of interest to publishers and
directors in all sectors: magazines, newspapers, journals, books,
STM, internet.
Specifically the information you gather at this event can be
used to:
* reduce costs and lead time in the marketing process by handling
your budget more effectively;
* improve your marketing mix by gaining a greater understanding
of the success of your campaigns and what marketing channels
work best for your product;
* use new technologies such as the internet and e-marketing
more effectively to reach new audiences and consolidate existing
ones;
* learn best marketing practice from other publishing sectors.
The half-day workshop runs fromfrom 9.30am - 12.30pm on Friday
January 31 2003. It will looks specifically at methods of generating
revenue through the internet and using this resource as a marketing
tool. Led by Jahan Salehi of Tribune Media Services International,
this workshop will give delegates the opportunity to discuss
these issues in a more interactive small-group environment.
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STRATEGIC
PLANNING FOR NOT-FOR-PROFIT PUBLISHERS
Strategic planning for not-for-profit publishers - making
the most of your publishing business.
This Workshop will take place on 3 - 4 March 2003, at the Milton
Hill Conference Centre, Abingdon, Oxfordshire OX13 6AF. Director:
Peter Shepherd, tutors: Mary Waltham and Tony Llewellyn.
Aimed at all senior executives with responsiblity for the management,
future direction and shape for their publishing businesses.
It will begin with a working dinner with guest speaker on the
Monday evening and finish at approximately 5pm on the Tuesday.
Objectives of the Workshop
• To understand the challenges specifically affecting
not-for-profit publishing businesses in the new, largely electronic
publishing environment:
• To provide the skills for strategic planning that will
enable executives to set about finding the appropriate solutions
for their own organisation:
• To provide a forum in which a small group of NFP publishers
can have a discussion and benefit from the experience of three
senior executives who have already faced the challenges of transforming
a largely print business into a largely electronic one.
Registration fees: £425 plus VAT for ALPSP members; £540
plus VAT for non-members. Register online: www.alpsp.org/tSPP030303.htm
Contact: Lesley Ogg, ALPSP Events Coordinator, email: events@alpsp.org
Telephone: 01245 260571.
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PETER
PAN IN COPYRIGHT DISPUTE
In
San Francisco, the 'boy who wouldn't grow up' has been dragged
into the adult world of the federal court.
A Canadian author, Emily Somma, has filed suit in San Francisco
saying that the characters in Peter Pan, including Tinker Bell,
Wendy and Captain Hook, are now in the public domain and no
longer protected by a copyright awarded in 1929.
The suit is a preemptive move in anticipation of legal action
by the British hospital that currently holds the copyright to
Peter Pan. The Great Ormond Street Hospital for Sick Children
in London already has warned Somma to halt publication of After
the Rain: A New Adventure for Peter Pan, which has been published
in Canada and can be purchased via the internet.
A lawyer for the hospital says Somma's effort to publish a work
without paying royalties is depriving the hospital of revenue
it needs to treat sick children. Somma's lawyer, Elizabeth Rader,
said the author had offered to pay royalties but was rebuffed.
The impending legal battle is part of a growing debate over
copyright material. The US Supreme Court heard arguments in
October in a case that seeks to thrust closely held creative
property - ranging from music such as George Gershwin's 'Rhapsody
in Blue' to books by Ernest Hemingway and F. Scott Fitzgerald
- into the public domain. The copyright to Peter Pan and its
characters was awarded by their creator, Sir James Barrie, to
the hospital in 1929. US. copyright protection for Barrie's
works, including The Little White Bird - a Peter Pan prototype
- and the popular children's play ‘Peter Pan’, normally
would have expired in 1987, a half-century after Barrie's death.
In a letter ordering Somma to halt publication of her book,
a lawyer for the hospital, Alvin Deutsch, contends that a 1976
US law extended the copyright protection for Peter Pan until
the year 2023. Somma's lawyer disagrees. "They have a theory
that spells out to that year," Rader said, "but I
don't see how it adds up."
Somma's After the Rain, in which Pan is brought home from Neverland
to grow up, was published by Daisy Books in Hamilton, Ontario.
The Canadian edition went largely unnoticed until Somma began
soliciting publishers in England.
A British Act of Parliament extended royalty rights there to
the hospital in perpetuity, but Peter Pan falls within the public
domain in Canada.
The Hospital has in the past granted licences for use of the
characters, including the widely seen Walt Disney film 'Hook'.
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OUTSOURCING
- MEETING PUBLISHERS' NEEDS
There are a confusing number of terms
for those who provide editorial, production and reprographic
services to publishing houses. There are obviously different
emphases and different areas of expertise within the industry,
but essentially they all handle outsourced work from publishers
and complete parts or all of the publishing process on their
behalf. Julia Morris of Cambridge Publishing Management tells
us how to get the best from outsourcing.
Cambridge Publishing Management specialises in full project
management of trade, travel and educational materials. We offer
translation, design, copy-editing, proofreading, illustration,
picture research, page make-up and a full repro service with
PDFs, PostScript files or film as a final product.
Publishers turn to publishing management companies for a variety
of reasons:
• to help in times of extreme pressure;
• to take on fast-track projects that disrupt in-house
procedures;
• to handle special projects / series where in-house knowledge
is insufficient;
• to cover for staff on maternity leave, sick leave or
holidays;
• to enable growth in terms of a publishing programme
without the burden or risk of taking on extra staff right from
the start.
Each publishing house has had to learn how to work with such
companies - a vital skill that is not always obvious or acknowledged.
Its importance is recognised by training bodies such as The
Publishing Training Centre, which runs a course entitled ‘Managing
Outsourcing’.
When placing a project, consider these aspects:
briefing effectively – e.g. be clear about the market
for the book and in what ways you want it to stand out as different
from or better than the competition;
clarifying expectations – in particular about exactly
what you think is covered by terms such as ‘complete project
management’ or ‘author management’, do you
want to see proofs simultaneously with the proofreader or after
they have been read? Do you want subject experts involved in
editing and reading? etc;
levels of involvement - do you want a say in which illustrators
are used or are you happy for the outsourcer to select these?
Do you want to know as soon as a problem arises or do you want
the outsourcer to solve it first?
communication – do you want just a single point of contact
at the publishing management company and on your side who will
be the main contact? Should certain people be copied into e-mails?
Do you prefer communication by phone or e-mail in general? Do
you want a monthly/weekly daily update? Can the publishing management
company liaise directly with the author(s)?;
contracts and payment terms – you may need to supply copies
of your particular artwork/copyright contracts to the publishing
management company to use on your behalf. Is there a formal
contract in place between you and the publishing management
company? Are there items you wish to pay for direct (such as
photo library fees)? Are you prepared to pay in two or three
stages during the life of the job or do you want a final invoice
only?
There is a need to establish a particular set of priorities
on any given title. For example, is timing all-important, is
there any leeway on the extent or is keeping the costs down
the main concern? You probably have a vision for the look and
feel of the book and this needs to be conveyed – an outsourcer
cannot necessarily guess at what might seem obvious to you.
Equally, publishing management companies must ensure that they
fully understand the different needs and expectations of each
individual client, as these vary wildly from one publishing
house to another and even within different divisions of the
same publishing house. Some companies believe that if they are
outsourcing a project then they really want to be able to forget
about it and leave it in the hands of the packager while they
concentrate on other matters. In these cases the packager needs
to take on all problem-solving and be highly proactive in every
respect. Other publishers like to maintain a certain degree
of control and to be involved in decision making throughout
the production process. In all cases, communication and the
flow of information is essential to keep everyone informed of
progress.
With the growing trend to use publishing management companies
it is important to consider all these issues and plan a proper
handover. Addressing them from the start can go a long way to
reducing the anxiety many publishers feel when relinquishing
control
of a project and to ensuring its trouble-free completion. m
If you would like more information about how Cambridge Publishing
Management can help with your publishing needs, contact Julia
Morris on 01223 367288 or email j.morris@cambridgepm.co.uk.
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RUSSIAN
PUBLISHING (two items, one on Siberian Publishing
and the second on copyright developments)
The Siberian Booktrade
- John Whitley takes a walk on the cold side of book
publishing - with a little help from his friends…
“I’m going to Siberia.” [This to my wife]
“That’s nice dear. May one ask why?”
“One may. One has been requested by the European Commission
to set up publishing training in Russia. So one is off to Novosibirsk
in November to find out about the Siberian Booktrade.”
“Well you’d better buy a hat. It’ll be cold.”
It wasn’t, and my extraordinary acquisition with fur and
dumbo flaps never left my case. The snow was melting and the
sun shining on my whistlestop tour. My hosts, Elena Shemetova
and Lidia Petruneva, were disappointed. They wanted to show
off their regional capital, and they were proud of their weather.
Siberia is a land of extremes, and slushy, temperate moderation
was spoiling the image.
But there was nothing slushy or moderate about Elena and Lidia.
Elena showed me round her empire in the State Technical University,
which supported the learning programmes of 20,000 students.
Elena is a truly remarkable publisher. She is the founder member
of ‘Professional Book’ – a new university
press utilising the resources, skills and knowledge of fellow
academics to produce books and educational materials for sale
to other learning centres. In between running this business
Elena managed her university department, taught students and
looked after her family. She was breathlessly enthusiastic about
everything. Nothing was impossible, and nothing was too much
trouble.
And then there was Lidia, the Greta Garbo of Siberian publishing,
trouser-suited, fair hair and neckscarf flying in the smoke
and sparks from her cigarettes. She runs Infolio Press, three
staff, 10 to 15 titles a year, a small educational and academic
publishing house. She was a mathematician before she became
a publisher, and this transformation from academia to commerce
was typical of many of her peers. Her books were opportunistic
pieces of publishing covering many potential markets.
There were books for teaching languages in schools, specialist
texts for universities, sponsored historical publications. Amongst
them was her pride and joy, a creation of true passion. She
had published the story of the finding of some mummified bodies
in Siberia, building the history around it and creating a masterpiece,
beautifully illustrated, crafted from love and published because
she cared.
Late in the evening I was taken to meet Georgi Lyamin, founder
and managing director of Top Kniga. Georgi, too, was a scientist
turned bookseller. Here was one of the most successful new ventures
in Russia, started from nothing but now operating around 30
stores, with its own warehousing and distribution systems, a
database to die for, sophisticated management information and
efficient, controlled processes. This is where Russia is headed,
with enterprise, brains and skill, if it is allowed to flourish.
So what training were they looking for? They wanted to understand
their markets – especially the international context –
much more thoroughly, and this theme was common to all Russian
publishers. They were worried about financial control. They
were interested in rights and co-editions and joint ventures.
We will know more once our analysis is complete, but the abiding
impression is of a vigorous, intuitive and often skilful emerging
market with exciting prospects.
They love books in Russia.
John Whitley, Chief Executive of The Publishing Training Centre
(www.train4publishing.co.uk).
The
Russians are here - with CopyRus
“Copyright and trademark owners in Russia, which has
one of the highest rates of software piracy in the world, were
given new protections under a new law signed by President Vladimir
Putin. The law is designed to speed Moscow’s admission
to the World Trade Organisation, in which protection of intellectual
property rights is a priority.”
Extract from International Herald Tribune, 17 December 2002.
On 27 November, the first Constituent Assembly of CopyRus, the
Russian Collective Management of Reprographic Reproduction Rights
Organisation was held in Moscow. Famous Russian authors, heads
of major artistic unions, state officials and several publishers,
including the largest publishing house in Russia, took part.
“The CLA sends its warmest congratulations on having achieved
your goal, not least the speed with which this happened was
impressive. We heard at the International Federation of Reproduction
Rights Organisations (IFRRO) Symposium that the legislation
was at that moment being placed before the Russian Duma and,
less than two months later, CopyRus has been established,”
said Peter Shepherd, chief executive of the CLA, first vice-president
of IFFRO and chairman of the Symposium on the Development of
Copyright Protection in Central and Eastern Europe and CIS countries
held in Warsaw. “For those of us who remember the Moscow
Book Fairs of the early 80s this marks an almost undreamt of
leap forward in Russian recognition of copyright,” he
said.
Sergey Zyatitskiy, Chairman of the CopyRus Board, thanked the
CLA for its continuing support and advice.
CopyRus will be co-hosting the international conference on copyright
in March 2003 in Moscow supported by WIPO and Rospatent, the
Russian Patent and Trademark Office.
Peter Shepherd will be attending the next IFFRO meeting in Singapore
in 2003, which will be the pivot of a broader series of Asian
meetings, including mainland China.
For further information contact: Tina Eckart, public relations
manager, The Copyright Licensing Agency Ltd.
E-mail: tina.eckart@cla.co.uk
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