[TOC Webcast] Why Publishers Should Care About SEO

Mac Slocum
October 14, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Tools of Change for Publishing will host a free webcast with search engine optimization (SEO) expert Jamie Low on Wednesday, Oct. 22 at 1 p.m. eastern (10 a.m. pacific).

Jamie will use a conversational format and live search queries to examine SEO elements and techniques, including:

• how publishers can get ranked for specific queries related to their content
• why some pages earn top spots in search listings and others fail to advance
• how to evaluate SEO strategies that will support real-world business objectives

Slots are limited, so register for free today.

Related Stories:

• Web Analytics Primer for Publishers
• Digital Experiments and Useful Analytics Must Go Hand-in-Hand
• Overestimating the Home Page
• When it Comes to Search, How Low Can You Go?
• TOC DVD: "Search Engine Optimization for Book Publishers"

Newsweek Repackaging Candidate Coverage for Kindle Bios

Mac Slocum
October 14, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2) | Listen

Newsweek will aggregate its coverage of John McCain, Barack Obama, Sarah Palin and Joe Biden into four Kindle-only biographies. From Amazon's Kindle Blog:

The book-length biographies contain archived reporting and commentary from Newsweek's coverage of the candidates from the magazine's award-winning political correspondents. Each biography takes readers through the lives of the candidates, from their personal beginnings to their political breakthroughs.

The $9.99 books will be available for download tomorrow. Amazon previously released Kindle biographies of both prospective first ladies.

Related Stories:

• Content Bridges: "New 'Have It Your Way' Publishing on the Way"
• Publishers Rush Economic Crisis Books
• Publishers Pushing to Meet Russert Book Demand
• "Last Lecture" Success Inspires Kindle Marketing
• Open Question: What is the Best Use for Print on Demand?

Joe Wikert Joins O'Reilly Media

Andrew Savikas
October 13, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (8) | Listen

We couldn't be happier to announce that Joe Wikert has joined O'Reilly Media as the General Manager of the O'Reilly Technology Exchange (OTX) division, which publishes our flagship "animal books."

Readers of this blog know we're big fans of Joe's work on his Publishing 2020 and Kindleville blogs. Joe's perspective is very much aligned with our own, and we're thrilled to add him to our list of innovators who believe in re-inventing the future of publishing. From the press release:

"Joe brings deep experience in technology publishing to his new position, but perhaps even more important, he embodies the innovative, adventurous 'alpha geek' spirit we believe is key to succeeding in today's publishing environment," said Laura Baldwin, O'Reilly COO and CFO. "His vision of the future of publishing is very much aligned with O'Reilly's. I'm delighted to bring his leadership to our flagship OTX division as we focus on building new ways to disseminate information to today's technologists."

The OTX division, which publishes O'Reilly's storied "animal books," serves the developers and system administrators who have been a key O'Reilly constituency throughout the company's 30-year history. Wikert is spearheading the expansion of the OTX publishing program into a broader offering that spans print, online, and in-person products and services.

Joe is already a member of the advisory committee for the 2009 TOC Conference, and stay tuned for more from him here on the TOC blog. Welcome Joe!

BBC Shifts Conversation Style: Go Where They're Already Talking

Peter Brantley
October 13, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

I think this deserves to be pondered. BBC News is moving away from merely hosting comments to inciting discussion in a variety of formats and locations. From Reportr.net:

For the US presidential debates, it [the BBC] has opened channels on video services Qik, 12Seconds and Phreadz. Some of the videos were subsequently edited and posted on the BBC News website.

The purpose, explains [BBC Editor] Matthew Eltringham, is "to join in conversations wherever they were happening rather than expect people to come to us and host them on the BBC's platforms."

This is a major change in the BBC's approach to user-generated content. It signals a shift away from the idea that the BBC should host the conversation. [Link added]

Related Stories:

• Tricky Relationship Between Mainstream Media and Citizen Journalism
• Cautious Optimism for Britannica's Hybrid Web Community
• Web Community Management Tips
• Maintaining a Web Community is as Hard as Building One
• Opportunities in Book Publishing and Web Communities

Overestimating the Home Page

Mac Slocum
October 13, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Brett Crosby from Google Analytics says a home page is often mistaken as the most important part of a Web site. From TechRadar:

Where are your visitors landing, bouncing, and viewing? It's often assumed user experience begins on the homepage, and this misconception drives many an ecommerce site to waste hours of design work in the wrong place. Search engines dig deeper into ecommerce sites, bringing visitors to not just 'electronics', but also televisions, MP3 players or sat navs. Analytics data will tell you where your real 'homepages' reside, so you can focus your design work there.

Crosby's point applies to content-based sites as well. Visitors often enter through an individual story page or blog post, not the home page. This is why there's value in serving up related posts, embedded links and call-outs to other features and tools on story-level pages.

(Via Jeremiah Owyang's Twitter stream)

Related Stories:

• Web Analytics Primer for Publishers
• Digital Experiments and Useful Analytics Must Go Hand-in-Hand
• When it Comes to Search, How Low Can You Go?
• Google Analytics FAQ
• About.com: "Web Analytics Basics: Learn to Measure Your Web Site"

Readius Rollable E-Reader at Frankfurt Book Fair

Mac Slocum
October 13, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

The Readius rollable e-reader will be presented at this week's Frankfurt Book Fair, according to the Readius official blog. First announced in July, the Readius is a cell-phone-sized gadget that includes a five-inch rollable E Ink display.

Related Stories:

• New Sony E-Reader Has Touchscreen, No Web Connection
• iRex's Large E-Reader Aimed at Business Crowd
• The Pitfalls of Publishing's E-Reader Guessing Game
• What Would Your Ideal E-Reader Look Like?

Publishers Rush Economic Crisis Books

Mac Slocum
October 10, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

The Economist says book publishers are rushing to cash in on the economic turmoil bubbling up across world markets:

Like any good bank in the pre-crash days, some publishers are splashing out to secure talent. Penguin's American arm has been particularly eager, bagging four inky-fingered "stars" in the past month, reportedly at a cost of over $2m in advances.

The Economist notes that long publishing deadlines may prevent book publishers from capitalizing on the current flush of consumer interest (and worry), especially if the situation stabilizes. But traditional publishing's burden is Web publishing's gain: Beet.TV says The Wall Street Journal's impeccably timed Web redesign coincided with record traffic, and there's been a surge in interest for NBC, BBC and Reuters Web properties.

(Via Shelf Awareness)

Related Stories:

• WSJ: "Booksellers Race to Add Financial-Advice Titles"
• Forbes: "Live, From the Internet"
• Publishers Pushing to Meet Russert Book Demand
• "Last Lecture" Success Inspires Kindle Marketing
• Open Question: What is the Best Use for Print on Demand?

First Frontlist O'Reilly Ebook Bundle (Including EPUB) Now Available

Andrew Savikas
October 9, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (2) | Listen

With today's release of iPod: The Missing Manual, Seventh Edition, by J.D. Biersdorfer and David Pogue, we're beginning the release of nearly all new (frontlist) titles as ebook bundles. SharePoint for Project Management, by Dux Raymond Sy, will be available tomorrow, and Web Security Testing Cookbook, by Paco Hope and Ben Walther, will be available next Tuesday (Oct. 14)

As with our pilot program, each bundle will include Web-optimized PDF, EPUB (for your Sony Reader or iPhone), and .mobi (for your Kindle) files. These ebook bundles will generally be available up to two weeks before the printed book is on store shelves (most of our books are also available on Safari Books Online before they're in stores).

As always, these files are DRM-free, and customers receive free updates to reflect any published changes in the book (more info on the bundles here). There are several other ebook projects and experiments in the works that I can't talk about just yet, but stay tuned between now and February's TOC Conference for updates (I can say that we'll be rolling out bundles for most of our backlist titles during that time frame).

Related Stories:

• O'Reilly Titles Now Available as Ebook Bundles
• How To Read O'Reilly EPUB eBooks on your iPhone with Stanza
• Treating Ebooks Like Software

TOC Recommended Reading

Mac Slocum
October 9, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

The Future Is A Foreign Country (Timo Hannay, Nascent)

As with my journey to Japan, my personal response to all this internet-enabled weirdness was one of almost unadulterated joy. The fact that it is disrupting publishing is, I think, the single most important reason that I've come into the industry. How boring the last 550 years since Gutenberg have been. Until now.

Ok Entrepreneurs, Time to Step Up (Brad Feld, Feld Thoughts)

When I look back at the dotcom apocalypse that was 2000 - 2002, I realize some of the best companies I've ever been involved in were created during that time. In the midst of this, I remember the endless stream of "the Internet is over" and "the information technology business in now a mature business and there will never be innovation again." Yeah - whatever.

Watching Books (Richard Curtis, TeleRead)

As successive generations accustomed to being diverted by watching, rather than by reading, enter the editorial workforce, impatience with printed text is demonstrably increasing, as we can see in the sharp decline of newspapers and magazines. Books require a commitment of time and attention that we either don't have or aren't willing to give. The temptation to skip or skimp is strong. One editor confessed to me, "I tend to scan manuscripts on screen rather than read them the way I do a printed text." We must therefore ask ourselves whether instead of reading books on screen, we are watching them.

Related:

• See more TOC Recommended Reading

The Digital Generation and E-Readers are Tied Together

Mac Slocum
October 8, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

Over on Radar, Nick Bilton from the New York Times R&D; group weighs in on the future of paper and e-readers:

A common response to the prospect of an eReader is, "But I love the feel of paper, I love a good book in my hands." I can empathize with that sentiment, but I don't think the digital generation can. If it's not a touch screen, or hyperlinked, or instantly available at the press of a button, then it's not worth their time. And as soon as a reasonable iPod-like replacement comes along, paper won't be worth the publishing industry's time either.

Related Stories:

• How Hackers Show it's Not All Bad News at the New York Times
• Kindle vs Sony Reader: Battle of Distribution Channels
• Open Question: All-in-One Devices or Single Use E-Readers?
• The Pitfalls of Publishing's E-Reader Guessing Game

Watch the YouTube Video, Buy the Product

Mac Slocum
October 8, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | Listen

YouTube's Content ID service, something we've covered in the past, gives publishers two options for handling unauthorized videos: the material can be removed from YouTube or it can be turned into advertising/revenue opportunities.

An article in today's New York Times shows which option Google prefers -- Content ID can now be used to associate "click-to-buy" links with video clips:

Music labels could choose to place the e-commerce links next to their own videos or on videos uploaded by users, whose images or soundtrack they identified using YouTube's Content ID system, which allows content owners to find unauthorized material on the site.

Click-to-buy links are shown below the video player on YouTube pages. It's unclear if this functionality will be integrated into videos embedded on external sites since this would require some sort of revenue share between the content owner, YouTube, the retailer and Web sites that publish embedded clips.

Links are currently limited to iTunes and Amazon products and are only viewable by U.S. visitors. YouTube says expansion plans are in the works.

Related Stories:

• PaidContent.org: "YouTube Adds Affiliate Links To Its Videos; Amazon and iTunes Downloads"
• Piracy and Advertising: An Unlikely Union that Just Might Work
• Official Google Blog: "Making Money on YouTube with Content ID"
• New York Times: "Google to Sell Ads for Web Games"
• Treating Ebooks Like Software
• Free Ebooks with Embedded Ads Via Scribd-Lulu Partnership

Amazon Launches UK POD Service; Partner Unknown

Mac Slocum
October 7, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

TheBookseller says Amazon is launching a print-on-demand service in the United Kingdom:

Amazon.com owns POD publisher BookSurge in the US, but the UK business has not divulged who will be handling the printing of POD titles in the UK.

In April, a spokesperson for Amazon.co.uk said the company -- at that time -- had no plans to bring BookSurge to the UK.

Related Stories:

• POD Publisher Files Class Action Lawsuit Against Amazon
• Amazon POD: Friend or Foe to Indie Publishers?
• Amazon Ups the Ante on Platform Lock-In
• Tim O'Reilly: "Publishers Beware: Amazon has you in their sights"

[TOC Directory] Recent Additions

Mac Slocum
October 7, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

20 new listings have been added to the TOC Directory in the last week, including:

• Sonibyte
• Astak
• Turnhere.com
• Lexcycle
• Zapptek

Visit the TOC Directory to add your own listings and events.

Share Your Success Story (or Lessons Learned from Failure) at TOC 2009

Andrew Savikas
October 7, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Listen

One of the ongoing goals for the TOC Conference is to encourage the sharing of success stories and of the lessons learned from failed experiments and initiatives. For 2009, we're going to try something a bit different to add to the discussion, and we want your help.

Tell us about your experience (good or bad!) with a new technology, technique, or strategy based on the shifting publishing landscape. We'd especially love to hear about efforts based on what you learned at a previous TOC Conference. We'll pick four submissions to present as part of a panel at the 2009 TOC Conference. If you're selected, you'll receive a complimentary admission to the full conference.

We're looking for personal accounts. We want to hear the key actions that led to success or failure, as well as what you've learned from the experience. Submissions can be in whatever format best suits your story: text, video, etc.

Send your story to toc AT oreilly.com before Nov. 10.

Tricky Relationship Between Mainstream Media and Citizen Journalism

Mac Slocum
October 7, 2008 | Permalink | Comments (1) | Listen

Citizen journalism took a beating last week when a post on CNN's iReport incorrectly reported that Steve Jobs had suffered a heart attack. (The post has been removed, but Google still has a cached version.)

Over at BuzzMachine, Jeff Jarvis pushes through the ensuing cit-j firestorm and redirects the conversation:

It may be a mistake for news organizations to keep begging people to send them stuff. That's the way they think -- centralized, controlling, exclusive. But the better structure may be for journalists to curate the best of what is out on the web. Rather than playing wack-a-mole on the occasional mistake/rumor/lie sent it, editors would better serve if they found the best content anywhere, not just among that which was sent to them.

The core issue here isn't whether citizen journalism works; it's whether it works in association with mainstream media (MSM). CNN goes out of its way to explain its connection to iReport -- with an exclamation point -- but rational explanations can't disentangle CNN's name from iReport's posts. The association is implied.

This is why Jarvis' suggestion makes sense. If MSM editors aggregate and filter posts from across the Web -- including third-party citizen journalism hubs -- there'll be no need for carefully-worded explanations of association. The New York Times is already employing a similar strategy in its technology section, and the Washington Post is aggregating political news/commentary in its Political Browser.

Related Stories:

• ReadWriteWeb: "Steve Jobs Had No Heart Attack...And Citizen Journalism Just Failed"
• Publishing 2.0: "False Steve Jobs Heart Attack Report on CNN's iReport Is a Failure of Open Systems"
• AP: "CNN hands over info on author of Steve Jobs rumor"
• Cautious Optimism for Britannica's Hybrid Web Community
• Validators: Asking for Donations to Pay for the News
• The Rise of "Found" Media