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Ripping the Wrong Page From Apple's E-Playbook February 08, 2010 
On January 27, a major speech took place: No, it was not the State of the Union address, but Steve Jobs' announcement of the release of the iPad. The iPad has already started to change the landscape of digital publishing: After a short battle, Amazon was forced to capitulate to a new deal with Macmillan, one of the six largest publishers; on Friday, Hachette started to make noise too.
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Hachette Joins E-Book Dogpile February 05, 2010 
Apple's new iPad may look like a thin, fragile piece of hardware, but it's apparently strong enough for publishing houses to use as a powerful wedge against Amazon in their negotiations over e-book pricing. Hachette Group became the latest publisher to announce it was going to move to the "agency" relationship with retailers, which would result in a higher pricing structure.
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DoJ Re-Nixes Google's Settlement With Authors February 05, 2010 
The Department of Justice has advised the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York that "significant" copyright and antitrust issues remain in the proposed amended settlement agreement between Google and the Authors Guild. "The amended settlement agreement suffers from the same core problem as the original agreement," the agency explains in its filing.
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The E-Book Empire Strikes February 05, 2010 
Apple held most of the music industry virtually at knifepoint for years, and that wasn't necessarily a bad thing, especially if you were a consumer who wanted a legal way to get popular music at a fairly reasonable price. It was only about a year ago that iTunes let go of its dollar-store policy and allowed for a little leeway in its pricing.
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Don't Stomp on the Bookworms, E-Publishers February 05, 2010 
Apple's new iPad is apparently going to let me download The DaVinci Code -- either in book or movie form. I like that. If you're going to release a new device and charge me a lot of money for it -- not to mention the costs of using a network of some kind to facilitate all that downloading and streaming -- then please don't get between me and my instant media gratification.
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Amazon's Touchco Buy Could Lead to Niftier Kindle February 04, 2010 
Amazon has reportedly acquired Touchco, a start up company that focuses on touch-screen technology, according to a report in The New York Times that cites a person briefed on the deal as a source. Amazon will merge Touchco's technology and staff into its Kindle hardware division, according to the Times.
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Amazon Grudgingly Gives In to Macmillan's Pricing Demands February 01, 2010 
After a brief protest late last week, Amazon now says it will give in and sell e-books from Macmillan at the higher prices the publisher has requested: $12.99 to $14.99 for e-book versions of bestsellers and most hardcover releases. Most Amazon Kindle e-books are priced closer to $9.99.
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Critics Hammer Away at Google Book Settlement January 29, 2010 
Google's bid to secure the digital rights to millions of books remains under attack from rivals and other critics trying to block a revised legal settlement that would unlock a vast electronic library. The opposition fired its latest salvo Thursday, the deadline for filing objections with U.S. District Judge Denny Chin in New York.
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iPad's Not Soft Enough to Cushion Journalism's Hard Landing January 29, 2010 
The more I see devices like the new Apple iPad, the more I come to appreciate Steven Spielberg's 2002 sci-fi spectacular "Minority Report." It was the first thing I thought of when I saw video of the company's newest "magical" creation and executives demonstrating its New York Times app. The app seamlessly integrated video content with the usual Grey Lady font and text.
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MashLogic: Links Done Your Way January 27, 2010 
In the world of venture capital fund-raising, the would-be entrepreneur is usually the party who goes looking for acceptance. However, that's not the way MashLogic got funded. Instead, several partners at Bessemer Venture Partners sought out Ranjit Padmanabhan with seed money and the cofounder title to start up MashLogic in late 2007.
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Berlusconi Decree Could Stifle Internet in Italy January 23, 2010 
Silvio Berlusconi is moving to extend his grip on Italy's media to the freewheeling Internet world of Google and YouTube. The premier's government has drafted a decree that would mandate the vetting of videos for pornographic or violent content uploaded by users onto such sites as YouTube, owned by Google, and the France-based Dailymotion, as well as blogs and online news media.
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Amazon Fattens E-Book Royalty Checks in Preemptive Strike January 20, 2010 
Authors and publishers of select Kindle e-books will soon be able to earn royalties as high as 70 percent of a title's list price, net of delivery costs, under a new plan announced by Amazon. The new option will be available starting June 30 for in-copyright Kindle books whose list price is both between $2.99 and $9.99 and at least 20 percent below the lowest list price for the physical book.
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New York Times to Charge Online Readers at the Door January 20, 2010 
The New York Times says it will charge readers for full access to its Web site starting in 2011, a risky move aimed at drawing more revenue online without driving away advertisers that want the biggest possible audience. The potential pitfalls have made most other major newspapers hesitant to take a similar step.
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New York Times Lays Foundation for Paywall January 18, 2010
The Gray Lady may once again ask for some green if you want to view something that's black and white and read all over. Reports surfaced over the weekend that The New York Times is about to announce another attempt at a paid-access business model for its Web site, with management apparently deciding that a metered approach stands the greatest chance of success without alienating consumers.
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Some of the Best CES Stories That Didn't Make the Headlines January 18, 2010 
Last week, I spoke about how CES was back, and I gave some of the highlights. However, there always are discussions and trends going on behind the scenes, almost-invisible products, and impressions that take a while to form that can be even more interesting. There were a couple of little companies, for example, that looked like they may be on the verge of becoming really big.
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The Bane of Technology Analysts Is ... Technology? January 15, 2010 
In 13 years of covering technology, I've evolved into the journalistic equivalent of Blanche DuBois; I've always depended on the kindness of analysts. Whether they were securities analysts working for the big Wall Street firms or technology analysts toiling for the major research companies targeting CIOs and IT-types, I've benefited from their work.
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