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Monday, January 31, 2011
First Night Floor is Deck
“First Night Floor is Deck”, a poem from Victor W. Pearn's Devil Dogs and Jarheads is slated to be aired by Garrison Keillor, host of A Prairie Home Companion and of The Writer's Almanac on February 5, 2011
Friday, January 21, 2011
News and Views from ALA 2011 Midwinter in San Diego
San Diego is the 7th largest city in the US and the second largest in California.
This year's preregistration figure the day before the January 7 show opening was 5,180 (not including exhibitors), 14 percent lower than last year's Boston preregistration of 6,043; Denver drew 6,903 pre-registrants only a year earlier (L J)
The final numbers from the ALA office were.
7,549 Attendees
2,561 Exhibitors
The consensus was that the conference attendance was especially low because it was too close to the holidays, too far away from the rest of the US, and that travel budgets were too tight. However the ALA Executive Board White Paper on ALA Midwinter supports continuing it in the future.
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/governance/officers/eb_documents/2010_2011ebdocuments/ebd12_17_%20mw_future.pdf
There were approximately 1000 meetings at this year’s midwinter convention. Some of the hot topics were patron driven acquisitions, collaborative collection development, connecting with patrons through mobile devices, job inventories, discovery services, and the looming budget crises of 2012. The purchase of Ebrary by ProQuest was breaking news as the conference opened.
Patron driven acquisitions is still a hot topic, but opportunities to continue exercising selection expertise are still important. Bibliographic and collection development skills are still needed to vet PDA lists. PDA has been useful for departments that don’t spend all of their allocation. With more adjunct faculty there is less input from professors. Only 37% of faculty is tenured now.
There are problems with ILL and PDA in a networked catalogue environment. One solution is to mark PDA acquisitions as non-circulating and update their status later. UCLA has instituted a paper only PDA model by loading book records in their catalogue.
Selection skills are necessary to winnow PDA offerings. Duke cut Ebrary down to 23,000 books that they offered up for patron acquisition. Foreign publications and rare books still need selection skills. The library’s local depository is also an area for selection expertise. And in a reversal of roles selection is very important when it comes to de-selection, as many libraries are doing.
Libraries are comparing their holdings to Hathi Trust to see if there are archival copies in order to winnow their own collections.
The recent launch of Google ebooks has been deemed a flop. The 3 million titles are either in the public domain already or are older titles that have no demand. Sales are very low. I feel that this is a preview to problems that Google will have if they ever launch their larger Google Books Project. On top of these problems many prominent authors have withdrawn from the settlement. What remains unique in the database are orphan books which probably have little demand. Figures from the legal case have hinted at a $55,00.00 cost for initial hookup to the Google books database if it ever becomes available.
There was a good amount of talk about the Espresso Book Machine, but sales for this device have not even reached 100 worldwide. Opinions about the machine tend to focus on its high cost and operating expense compared to simply using a well equipped print shop. With Xerox taking over the machine’s distribution there may be some improvement in the functioning of the machine and fewer breakdowns.
There was buzz about sharing collection development staff across institutions such as Cornell and Columbia are doing.
Lots of talk about single article purchase for journals. Opinion was that libraries would like to keep access to the articles they purchase rather than pursue a “one sip” model.
Word that many faculty are being required to teach at least one online class.
Swank, Corp. clears copyright for libraries about $100.00 per video title per semester.
Libraries are embedding access into Blackboard to try to be more pro-active. Also feeding current titles to students based on their majors.
Doing more with less: job inventories and re-allocation of responsibilities.
Amazon is republishing titles based on used book sales ranks.
Staying in touch with students through mobile devices was a popular subject. Librarians that offer this service say that students search databases and email articles to themselves for later reading. Sales of mobile devices will surpass pc’s by 2012. JSTOR, EBSCO, IEEE, ArtStor, Cambridge Journals and Pub Med are among databases offering mobile access.
The Harvard Law Library has developed a novel way to view books in their repository. They have created a virtual book shelf based on their catalogue and the books are color coded based on their circulation numbers so users can easily see the most popular books.
This year's preregistration figure the day before the January 7 show opening was 5,180 (not including exhibitors), 14 percent lower than last year's Boston preregistration of 6,043; Denver drew 6,903 pre-registrants only a year earlier (L J)
The final numbers from the ALA office were.
7,549 Attendees
2,561 Exhibitors
The consensus was that the conference attendance was especially low because it was too close to the holidays, too far away from the rest of the US, and that travel budgets were too tight. However the ALA Executive Board White Paper on ALA Midwinter supports continuing it in the future.
http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/governance/officers/eb_documents/2010_2011ebdocuments/ebd12_17_%20mw_future.pdf
There were approximately 1000 meetings at this year’s midwinter convention. Some of the hot topics were patron driven acquisitions, collaborative collection development, connecting with patrons through mobile devices, job inventories, discovery services, and the looming budget crises of 2012. The purchase of Ebrary by ProQuest was breaking news as the conference opened.
Patron driven acquisitions is still a hot topic, but opportunities to continue exercising selection expertise are still important. Bibliographic and collection development skills are still needed to vet PDA lists. PDA has been useful for departments that don’t spend all of their allocation. With more adjunct faculty there is less input from professors. Only 37% of faculty is tenured now.
There are problems with ILL and PDA in a networked catalogue environment. One solution is to mark PDA acquisitions as non-circulating and update their status later. UCLA has instituted a paper only PDA model by loading book records in their catalogue.
Selection skills are necessary to winnow PDA offerings. Duke cut Ebrary down to 23,000 books that they offered up for patron acquisition. Foreign publications and rare books still need selection skills. The library’s local depository is also an area for selection expertise. And in a reversal of roles selection is very important when it comes to de-selection, as many libraries are doing.
Libraries are comparing their holdings to Hathi Trust to see if there are archival copies in order to winnow their own collections.
The recent launch of Google ebooks has been deemed a flop. The 3 million titles are either in the public domain already or are older titles that have no demand. Sales are very low. I feel that this is a preview to problems that Google will have if they ever launch their larger Google Books Project. On top of these problems many prominent authors have withdrawn from the settlement. What remains unique in the database are orphan books which probably have little demand. Figures from the legal case have hinted at a $55,00.00 cost for initial hookup to the Google books database if it ever becomes available.
There was a good amount of talk about the Espresso Book Machine, but sales for this device have not even reached 100 worldwide. Opinions about the machine tend to focus on its high cost and operating expense compared to simply using a well equipped print shop. With Xerox taking over the machine’s distribution there may be some improvement in the functioning of the machine and fewer breakdowns.
There was buzz about sharing collection development staff across institutions such as Cornell and Columbia are doing.
Lots of talk about single article purchase for journals. Opinion was that libraries would like to keep access to the articles they purchase rather than pursue a “one sip” model.
Word that many faculty are being required to teach at least one online class.
Swank, Corp. clears copyright for libraries about $100.00 per video title per semester.
Libraries are embedding access into Blackboard to try to be more pro-active. Also feeding current titles to students based on their majors.
Doing more with less: job inventories and re-allocation of responsibilities.
Amazon is republishing titles based on used book sales ranks.
Staying in touch with students through mobile devices was a popular subject. Librarians that offer this service say that students search databases and email articles to themselves for later reading. Sales of mobile devices will surpass pc’s by 2012. JSTOR, EBSCO, IEEE, ArtStor, Cambridge Journals and Pub Med are among databases offering mobile access.
The Harvard Law Library has developed a novel way to view books in their repository. They have created a virtual book shelf based on their catalogue and the books are color coded based on their circulation numbers so users can easily see the most popular books.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Busca at ALA Midwinter 2011
Three members of the BUSCA Team plan to be at the American Library Association's MidWinter Conference this week in San Diego, California. Some of us will be on the exhibit hall show floor, working at THE REFERENCE SHELF booth. Please look for John D. Riley, Loren P. Hirsch, and Michael D. Cooper. We will also be attending several meetings.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Charleston Skit Script 2010
Busca is proud to share the Charleston 2010 skit script written by John Riley and Eleanor I. Cook, the Assistant Director for Collections & Technical Services, Joyner Library, East Carolina University. Keep an eye out for the video of this skit on the Charleston Conference website.
Charleston Skit Script 2010
SCENE ONE
INTRODUCTION /History By Narrator (Corrie)
Narrator: Corrie Marsh
Katina: Athena Michaels
Bill Gates: Todd Hallerman
Al Gore: Stephen Clark
In honor of this Conference’s 30th anniversary, the Charleston Players are pleased to present yet another skit, we fondly entitle “Doin’ That Charleston Rag.”
It was 30 years ago that Katina Strauch held the very first acquisitions conference here in beautiful Charleston, South Carolina. We’ve seen it all over the years, and we never know what to expect! Sometimes we experience 4 different seasons in 4 days. You should always be sure to pack both Bermuda shorts AND an overcoat! Sometimes we’ll even get a Hurricane, but Hugo couldn’t stop the conference from forging ahead back in 1989. Since that first conference in 1980 we’ve experienced the complete renovation of the Francis Marion Hotel, the demise of the the Lightsey Conference Center, The opening of a beautiful new Library building at the College of Charleston, businesses turning over constantly on Upper King Street and elsewhere, and the opening of the great new Cooper River Bridge to Mt. Pleasant. (Some of us miss the old roller coaster of a bridge - some of us DON’T!) Charleston as a destination definitely has added to the attraction of this event, especially for those travelling from colder climes. Could you imagine if this conference had been conceived in Bayonne, New Jersey? (Perhaps Jersey Shore Acquisitions Librarians?)
So, in celebration of 30 incredible years of dancing at the Jukebox, dining at fabulous restaurants and the conference’s own Oyster Roast, beach combing, sun bathing, golfing at the Dunes, ghost hunting at night, Highjinks and pratfalls during the skits, shopping for Sweet Grass baskets in the Market, lounging under the palm trees, oh…. But don’t let us forget ... Beastly Breakfasts, Lively Lunches, Intense Debates, Stunning Pronouncements, Dire Predictions, Sleep Inducing Power Points, Lyman’s infallible memory, Matthew J. Bruccoli’s Jeremiads, Buzzy Basch’s rainbow of neckties, Networking together in the Halls of the old Lightsey Conference Center that seemed like High School between classes, Katina and friends Ringing the Bell to start each new session...[distant sound of ringing the bell, coming closer with the entrance of players]. Let us take you back in time….back, back, over 50 years ago to the genesis of the Charleston Conference…We take you to a playground where 8 year old Katina is hanging out with her playmates, Al Gore and Bill Gates:
[Players enter]:
Katina [ringing a bell and licking an enormous lollipop], Bill Gates [wearing extra large glasses] and Al Gore [playing with a yo-yo]
Al: When I grow up I’m going to invent the internet.
Katina and Bill [in unison]: What’s the internet?
Al: It’s an interconnected web of computers creating instantaneous access to information all over the world.
Bill: Sounds stupid. Who needs that? When I grow up I am going to have a monopoly on personal computer operating systems. That’s much more profitable.
Al: The internet will make that obsolete.
Bill: Hold your horses. I haven’t even stolen Windows from Steve Jobs yet. How can it be obsolete?
Katina: When I grow up I’m going to start an acquisitions conference where librarians, vendors, and publishers can come together and meet and discuss mutually interesting topics.
Bill: That will never work! That’s like saying someday cats and dogs will live together. It might get violent.
Katina: And I will let whoever wants to come and I won’t limit who gets to attend. We’ll have speakers from England and Germany, Australia, New Zealand and Africa, and and…You know…I just can’t say no to nobody, y’all.
Al and Bill: “librarians and vendors and publishers? Oh my!”
Al and Bill and Katina: “Librarians and vendors and publishers? Oh my!”
Al and Bill and Katina (skipping together): “Librarians and vendors and publishers? Oh my!”
All together: “We’re off to see the Conference, the Wonderful Conference of Chas.”
[Players Exit]- Round table is moved front and center, with 8 chairs
=====================================================================
SCENE TWO: An Early conference (1980’s)
Players: (around a large round table) Big Name Tents in front of each of them.
Katina: Athena Michaels
Janet Flowers: Ann-Marie Breaux
Tom Leonhardt: Todd Hallerman
Deanna Astle: Eleanor Cook
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Lyman Newlin: John Laraway
Steve Johnson: Stephen Clark
Joe the (every) Vendor: John Riley
Narrator (Corrie): Welcome to 1980 and the very first Charleston Acquisitions Conference. In an era of power suits and post punk, Katina created a laid back atmosphere where suits and ties were left behind. The first Conference was only 50 people meeting in one room. Let’s take a peek back in time.
Katina: OK ya’ll [with notepad in hand, ready to take notes] – what are the hot topics of the day? We need to talk it about it.
Janet: I’m Janet Flowers from UNC-Chapel Hill. Well, we are wondering if our approval plan is working correctly and whether or not using CIP slips for ordering is the right way to go. We’ve also heard about a great new concept – the Integrated Library System – has anyone else considered that?
Tom: I’m Tom Leonhart from Duke. If any company can actually get all the library functions in one system, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle! I doubt I’ll see that in my lifetime. I’m more concerned right now about spending end of year money on microfilm sets whenever possible. They’ll even throw in a free film reader if you spend enough!
Deanna [While knitting]: I’m Deanna Astle from Clemson. I think prices are going to be a problem for a long, long time, so I am learning how to use spreadsheets – they are going to be the tool of the future.
Katina: “I can’t decide whether to order an oak or steel card catalogue. I want something that will hold up for decades.”
Tom: Be sure it’s expandable. It will need to last for centuries.
Katina: Anyone have questions or comments about these or other topics? I’m taking notes, you know.
Chuck: Hi,I’m Chuck Hamaker from Yale. I’ve had it with serial price increases! Do you know they now cost a dollar a word! A comma costs a nickel and a question mark is now a quarter!
Joe the Vendor: Hi I’m Joe the Vendor from Palookaville. I’m tired of librarians asking us vendors to constantly do more and give more discounts at the same time! How can we keep taking you out to Poogan’s Porch if we don’t make any money?”
Lyman: Hi I’m Lyman Newlin, as my good friend Johannes Gutenberg used to say, “Books will be obsolete in 600 hundred years. I’d better get busy before they invent that blasted e-book and put me out of business.
Steve: Hi I’m Steve Johnson from Clemson. Is it beer tasting time yet?
[Players get up and leave. Table gets moved out of the way for next scene; chairs re-arranged around the podium in a wide arc facing the audience]
=============================================================
SCENE THREE: A typical 1990’s conference {Robert Maxwell, Berlin wall, Tieneman square )
Katina: Athena Michaels
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Lyman Newlin: John Laraway [will use a cane here, but still walking], slightly stooped]
Steve Johnson: Stephen Clark
Joe the (every) Vendor: John Riley
Becky Lenzini: Jennifer Clarke
Dorinda Harmon: Ann-Marie Breaux
Judy Webster: Susan Zappan
Players enter. sitting in a semi-circle around the podium, facing the audience. ]
Chuck (stands up): Hi I’m Chuck Hamaker from LSU. I’ve REALLY had it with serials price increases! Robert Maxwell is going overboard.” (Picture of Maxwell’s boat)
[Sits down]
Joe the Vendor: (Stands up) Hi I’m Joe the Vendor from the William Loman Company. I’m tired of librarians asking us vendors to constantly do more and give more discounts at the same time! If we don’t make money how can we afford those high dollar exhibit booths at ALA.? (Picture of elaborate trade show booth)
Lyman:(remains seated, but waves his cane) “Hi I’m Lyman Newlin and I’m not gettin’ any younger so I’m gonna let them bring the microphone to me. WhATTA YA THINK? Well, I could tell you lots of stories, but I don’t have time right now. You can read it all in Against the Grain, yep, Katina has that completely under control. My son, Fred, you know, he’s a smart one, he keeps telling me about this new fangled computer stuff, I think they call it the internet, what about that? Do you all know about that? We’re in historic times you know! The Berlin wall actually fell while we were here in Charleston - that’s amazing!
Steve: “Hi I’m Steve Johnson from Clemson. Is it beer tasting time yet?”
Dorinda: [agitated] Steve, you can set up your beer tasting outside tonight at the Oyster Roast, assuming I don’t have a nervous breakdown first, trying to get all the details of this ever-lovin’, ever-growing conference nailed down! Jeez Louise!
Judy: [Calmly] Settle down Dorinda. We’ll get through it, we always do, don’t we?
Dorinda: Judy you are the calmest person I ever met! Just slap me!
Katina: Judy, we miss you every day ...
Judy: Katina, the show must go on!
Katina: Yes it will. Let me give you my secret of juggling all of the programs and speakers and meetings.
All together: Please Katina we’ve always been amazed at how you do it all.
Katina: Well, y’all, this is how I do it. It’s been my secret formula for 30 years. Whenever anyone suggests a new topic for the conference or complains about something….I put them in charge of it! Simple They’re happy, I’m happy and the Conference goes on!
All together: So that’s your secret to staying cool, calm and collected in the middle of it all.
Katina: Like with the skits. I just let the Charleston Players go nuts. I just can’t say no to nobody ya’all.
=================================================================
SCENE FOUR: A Typical early 21st century conference (circa 2002) (Skits, e-things)
Katina: Athena Michaels
Lyman: John Laraway [comes in riding the scooter, waving cane]
Beth Bernhardt: Jennifer Clarke
Anthony Watkinson: Stephen Clark (ringing bell)
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Edna Loughrey: Ann-Marie Breaux
Eleanor: Herself
John Riley: Himself
Players enter. This time they are up on the podium, talking amongst themselves.
Eleanor: John we’ve got to work on this new skit but we CANNOT have 15 minutes of Shakespearean soliloquy spouting Elizabethan curses! We don’t have time!
John: Well drats. Katina said do whatever we want. Let’s see…How about a skit called “Melville Dewey, Zombie Slayer?”
Eleanor: [rolls eyes]: Jooohhnnnn!!!!
John: Vampire Hunter?”
Beth: Skit Folks, you have 15 minutes tops, OK?
Anthony: Methinks the damsel doth protest too much. I fancy John’s Elizabethan patter of course, but we only have so much time for this dribble you know.
Chuck: It is MUCH more important that we have time for the important issues These skits are just a distraction! I am seriously concerned about serials pricing!
Katina: But Chuck, I do so like enjoy them! The skits, that is.
Edna: We have to think about the bottom line sometimes in order to keep going.
Beth: Yeah, Katina, the bottom line. We have over a thousand people coming now. Where are we going to put them all?
Edna: We could cut off attendance and limit the number of attendees.
Katina: Horrors no! I just can’t say no to nobody.
=================================================================
SCENE Five What the Future May Hold
Conference: Flash Forward to 2020
Katina: Athena Michaels
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Joe the vendor: John Riley
Lyman: John Laraway
Steve Johnson: Stephen Clark
God: Jack Montgomery (in the Gold Room)
Katina: “Welcome to the new Patron Driven Acquisitions Conference and Yoga retreat. What do ya’ll want to do?”
Chuck: “Well at least there aren’t any more blasted serials to complain about now that it’s 2020, and I am retired and living in Rio.
Joe the Vendor: “No vendors either. Now that Google has the copyright on the alphabet and Amazon has a patent on reading how can we make any money? Ah, Remember books?
Lyman: “Books? I can remember when there was just one continent.”
Steve: “At least there’s still beer. I vote we do some patron driven keg tapping.”
Voice of Jack Montgomery over speaker system: “Hi, this is God. I wanted to thank Katina for doing my work in trying to bring peace, love, and understanding to the tribes. Katina, I award you my highest honor…sainthood in the Pantheon of Jubilee Saints!
Katina: “Oh my God, I mean, God you’ve got a Southern accent. Just like lil’ ol’ me.”
“That’s because you’re an angel Katina and Charleston is a just little piece of Heaven.”
Katina: Well, God, I have one last wish....I want to go back just for an hour, back to the Jukebox in 1990.
God: Your wish is my command Katina. We started with a dance let’s end it with one too!
==============================================================
FINAL (SIXTH) SCENE At the Jukebox Discotheque
Narrator (Ann-Marie): We take you back to the Jukebox, a dance club where many memories and hangovers were created...
At the Jukebox Discotheque {Ann-Marie will drive the PPT for this}
Katina: Athena Michaels
Eleanor: Herself
Corrie: Herself
Sandy Paul: Jennifer Clarke
John Riley: Himself
Nancy Newbie: Susan Zappan
British vendor: Tim Turner
French Publisher: Stephen Clark
[“I will Survive” and then “We Are Family” playing in the background]
Players enter to music. Dressed for discotheque. Milling around, grooving to the music, beer bottles in hand.
French Publisher: Bon soir mademoiselle. You are looking tres chic tonight. I work for an international publisher and have had 4 wives but am currently between wives, so would you care to dance with me?
Eleanor: Oh certainly, and you smell divine too, you are wearing some kind of fabulous French cologne. Just don’t get any ideas about me being your next acquisition.
French publisher: But of course, mais non! Just a dance, belle chere! [They dance]
British vendor: What a delightful venue! Reminds me of a London discotheque So, do you come here often? I currently have investments in 5 different companies, last time I checked. Would you care to dance?
Corrie: Sure, can you do the Electric Slide?
British vendor: My dear! I am a British gentleman, I am used to waltzing at the Proms..
Corrie: OK, let’s boogie! (Corrie grabs him and starts dancing)
Sandy Paul: Oh, This is one of my favorite songs! [We are Family starts playing]
John Riley: Me too, it’s perfect for the conference crowd.
Sandy Paul: I have to practice before I can do that one! {They dance}
Newbie Conference attendee: Wow, Katina, this is so much fun! Do ya’ll do this every year?
Katina: As long as Charleston is here we’ll be too. Thanks for coming for 30 years! Come on y’all….let’s all dance.
[Actors dance out of the room with Katina}
Charleston Skit Script 2010
SCENE ONE
INTRODUCTION /History By Narrator (Corrie)
Narrator: Corrie Marsh
Katina: Athena Michaels
Bill Gates: Todd Hallerman
Al Gore: Stephen Clark
In honor of this Conference’s 30th anniversary, the Charleston Players are pleased to present yet another skit, we fondly entitle “Doin’ That Charleston Rag.”
It was 30 years ago that Katina Strauch held the very first acquisitions conference here in beautiful Charleston, South Carolina. We’ve seen it all over the years, and we never know what to expect! Sometimes we experience 4 different seasons in 4 days. You should always be sure to pack both Bermuda shorts AND an overcoat! Sometimes we’ll even get a Hurricane, but Hugo couldn’t stop the conference from forging ahead back in 1989. Since that first conference in 1980 we’ve experienced the complete renovation of the Francis Marion Hotel, the demise of the the Lightsey Conference Center, The opening of a beautiful new Library building at the College of Charleston, businesses turning over constantly on Upper King Street and elsewhere, and the opening of the great new Cooper River Bridge to Mt. Pleasant. (Some of us miss the old roller coaster of a bridge - some of us DON’T!) Charleston as a destination definitely has added to the attraction of this event, especially for those travelling from colder climes. Could you imagine if this conference had been conceived in Bayonne, New Jersey? (Perhaps Jersey Shore Acquisitions Librarians?)
So, in celebration of 30 incredible years of dancing at the Jukebox, dining at fabulous restaurants and the conference’s own Oyster Roast, beach combing, sun bathing, golfing at the Dunes, ghost hunting at night, Highjinks and pratfalls during the skits, shopping for Sweet Grass baskets in the Market, lounging under the palm trees, oh…. But don’t let us forget ... Beastly Breakfasts, Lively Lunches, Intense Debates, Stunning Pronouncements, Dire Predictions, Sleep Inducing Power Points, Lyman’s infallible memory, Matthew J. Bruccoli’s Jeremiads, Buzzy Basch’s rainbow of neckties, Networking together in the Halls of the old Lightsey Conference Center that seemed like High School between classes, Katina and friends Ringing the Bell to start each new session...[distant sound of ringing the bell, coming closer with the entrance of players]. Let us take you back in time….back, back, over 50 years ago to the genesis of the Charleston Conference…We take you to a playground where 8 year old Katina is hanging out with her playmates, Al Gore and Bill Gates:
[Players enter]:
Katina [ringing a bell and licking an enormous lollipop], Bill Gates [wearing extra large glasses] and Al Gore [playing with a yo-yo]
Al: When I grow up I’m going to invent the internet.
Katina and Bill [in unison]: What’s the internet?
Al: It’s an interconnected web of computers creating instantaneous access to information all over the world.
Bill: Sounds stupid. Who needs that? When I grow up I am going to have a monopoly on personal computer operating systems. That’s much more profitable.
Al: The internet will make that obsolete.
Bill: Hold your horses. I haven’t even stolen Windows from Steve Jobs yet. How can it be obsolete?
Katina: When I grow up I’m going to start an acquisitions conference where librarians, vendors, and publishers can come together and meet and discuss mutually interesting topics.
Bill: That will never work! That’s like saying someday cats and dogs will live together. It might get violent.
Katina: And I will let whoever wants to come and I won’t limit who gets to attend. We’ll have speakers from England and Germany, Australia, New Zealand and Africa, and and…You know…I just can’t say no to nobody, y’all.
Al and Bill: “librarians and vendors and publishers? Oh my!”
Al and Bill and Katina: “Librarians and vendors and publishers? Oh my!”
Al and Bill and Katina (skipping together): “Librarians and vendors and publishers? Oh my!”
All together: “We’re off to see the Conference, the Wonderful Conference of Chas.”
[Players Exit]- Round table is moved front and center, with 8 chairs
=====================================================================
SCENE TWO: An Early conference (1980’s)
Players: (around a large round table) Big Name Tents in front of each of them.
Katina: Athena Michaels
Janet Flowers: Ann-Marie Breaux
Tom Leonhardt: Todd Hallerman
Deanna Astle: Eleanor Cook
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Lyman Newlin: John Laraway
Steve Johnson: Stephen Clark
Joe the (every) Vendor: John Riley
Narrator (Corrie): Welcome to 1980 and the very first Charleston Acquisitions Conference. In an era of power suits and post punk, Katina created a laid back atmosphere where suits and ties were left behind. The first Conference was only 50 people meeting in one room. Let’s take a peek back in time.
Katina: OK ya’ll [with notepad in hand, ready to take notes] – what are the hot topics of the day? We need to talk it about it.
Janet: I’m Janet Flowers from UNC-Chapel Hill. Well, we are wondering if our approval plan is working correctly and whether or not using CIP slips for ordering is the right way to go. We’ve also heard about a great new concept – the Integrated Library System – has anyone else considered that?
Tom: I’m Tom Leonhart from Duke. If any company can actually get all the library functions in one system, I’ll be a monkey’s uncle! I doubt I’ll see that in my lifetime. I’m more concerned right now about spending end of year money on microfilm sets whenever possible. They’ll even throw in a free film reader if you spend enough!
Deanna [While knitting]: I’m Deanna Astle from Clemson. I think prices are going to be a problem for a long, long time, so I am learning how to use spreadsheets – they are going to be the tool of the future.
Katina: “I can’t decide whether to order an oak or steel card catalogue. I want something that will hold up for decades.”
Tom: Be sure it’s expandable. It will need to last for centuries.
Katina: Anyone have questions or comments about these or other topics? I’m taking notes, you know.
Chuck: Hi,I’m Chuck Hamaker from Yale. I’ve had it with serial price increases! Do you know they now cost a dollar a word! A comma costs a nickel and a question mark is now a quarter!
Joe the Vendor: Hi I’m Joe the Vendor from Palookaville. I’m tired of librarians asking us vendors to constantly do more and give more discounts at the same time! How can we keep taking you out to Poogan’s Porch if we don’t make any money?”
Lyman: Hi I’m Lyman Newlin, as my good friend Johannes Gutenberg used to say, “Books will be obsolete in 600 hundred years. I’d better get busy before they invent that blasted e-book and put me out of business.
Steve: Hi I’m Steve Johnson from Clemson. Is it beer tasting time yet?
[Players get up and leave. Table gets moved out of the way for next scene; chairs re-arranged around the podium in a wide arc facing the audience]
=============================================================
SCENE THREE: A typical 1990’s conference {Robert Maxwell, Berlin wall, Tieneman square )
Katina: Athena Michaels
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Lyman Newlin: John Laraway [will use a cane here, but still walking], slightly stooped]
Steve Johnson: Stephen Clark
Joe the (every) Vendor: John Riley
Becky Lenzini: Jennifer Clarke
Dorinda Harmon: Ann-Marie Breaux
Judy Webster: Susan Zappan
Players enter. sitting in a semi-circle around the podium, facing the audience. ]
Chuck (stands up): Hi I’m Chuck Hamaker from LSU. I’ve REALLY had it with serials price increases! Robert Maxwell is going overboard.” (Picture of Maxwell’s boat)
[Sits down]
Joe the Vendor: (Stands up) Hi I’m Joe the Vendor from the William Loman Company. I’m tired of librarians asking us vendors to constantly do more and give more discounts at the same time! If we don’t make money how can we afford those high dollar exhibit booths at ALA.? (Picture of elaborate trade show booth)
Lyman:(remains seated, but waves his cane) “Hi I’m Lyman Newlin and I’m not gettin’ any younger so I’m gonna let them bring the microphone to me. WhATTA YA THINK? Well, I could tell you lots of stories, but I don’t have time right now. You can read it all in Against the Grain, yep, Katina has that completely under control. My son, Fred, you know, he’s a smart one, he keeps telling me about this new fangled computer stuff, I think they call it the internet, what about that? Do you all know about that? We’re in historic times you know! The Berlin wall actually fell while we were here in Charleston - that’s amazing!
Steve: “Hi I’m Steve Johnson from Clemson. Is it beer tasting time yet?”
Dorinda: [agitated] Steve, you can set up your beer tasting outside tonight at the Oyster Roast, assuming I don’t have a nervous breakdown first, trying to get all the details of this ever-lovin’, ever-growing conference nailed down! Jeez Louise!
Judy: [Calmly] Settle down Dorinda. We’ll get through it, we always do, don’t we?
Dorinda: Judy you are the calmest person I ever met! Just slap me!
Katina: Judy, we miss you every day ...
Judy: Katina, the show must go on!
Katina: Yes it will. Let me give you my secret of juggling all of the programs and speakers and meetings.
All together: Please Katina we’ve always been amazed at how you do it all.
Katina: Well, y’all, this is how I do it. It’s been my secret formula for 30 years. Whenever anyone suggests a new topic for the conference or complains about something….I put them in charge of it! Simple They’re happy, I’m happy and the Conference goes on!
All together: So that’s your secret to staying cool, calm and collected in the middle of it all.
Katina: Like with the skits. I just let the Charleston Players go nuts. I just can’t say no to nobody ya’all.
=================================================================
SCENE FOUR: A Typical early 21st century conference (circa 2002) (Skits, e-things)
Katina: Athena Michaels
Lyman: John Laraway [comes in riding the scooter, waving cane]
Beth Bernhardt: Jennifer Clarke
Anthony Watkinson: Stephen Clark (ringing bell)
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Edna Loughrey: Ann-Marie Breaux
Eleanor: Herself
John Riley: Himself
Players enter. This time they are up on the podium, talking amongst themselves.
Eleanor: John we’ve got to work on this new skit but we CANNOT have 15 minutes of Shakespearean soliloquy spouting Elizabethan curses! We don’t have time!
John: Well drats. Katina said do whatever we want. Let’s see…How about a skit called “Melville Dewey, Zombie Slayer?”
Eleanor: [rolls eyes]: Jooohhnnnn!!!!
John: Vampire Hunter?”
Beth: Skit Folks, you have 15 minutes tops, OK?
Anthony: Methinks the damsel doth protest too much. I fancy John’s Elizabethan patter of course, but we only have so much time for this dribble you know.
Chuck: It is MUCH more important that we have time for the important issues These skits are just a distraction! I am seriously concerned about serials pricing!
Katina: But Chuck, I do so like enjoy them! The skits, that is.
Edna: We have to think about the bottom line sometimes in order to keep going.
Beth: Yeah, Katina, the bottom line. We have over a thousand people coming now. Where are we going to put them all?
Edna: We could cut off attendance and limit the number of attendees.
Katina: Horrors no! I just can’t say no to nobody.
=================================================================
SCENE Five What the Future May Hold
Conference: Flash Forward to 2020
Katina: Athena Michaels
Chuck Hamaker: Himself
Joe the vendor: John Riley
Lyman: John Laraway
Steve Johnson: Stephen Clark
God: Jack Montgomery (in the Gold Room)
Katina: “Welcome to the new Patron Driven Acquisitions Conference and Yoga retreat. What do ya’ll want to do?”
Chuck: “Well at least there aren’t any more blasted serials to complain about now that it’s 2020, and I am retired and living in Rio.
Joe the Vendor: “No vendors either. Now that Google has the copyright on the alphabet and Amazon has a patent on reading how can we make any money? Ah, Remember books?
Lyman: “Books? I can remember when there was just one continent.”
Steve: “At least there’s still beer. I vote we do some patron driven keg tapping.”
Voice of Jack Montgomery over speaker system: “Hi, this is God. I wanted to thank Katina for doing my work in trying to bring peace, love, and understanding to the tribes. Katina, I award you my highest honor…sainthood in the Pantheon of Jubilee Saints!
Katina: “Oh my God, I mean, God you’ve got a Southern accent. Just like lil’ ol’ me.”
“That’s because you’re an angel Katina and Charleston is a just little piece of Heaven.”
Katina: Well, God, I have one last wish....I want to go back just for an hour, back to the Jukebox in 1990.
God: Your wish is my command Katina. We started with a dance let’s end it with one too!
==============================================================
FINAL (SIXTH) SCENE At the Jukebox Discotheque
Narrator (Ann-Marie): We take you back to the Jukebox, a dance club where many memories and hangovers were created...
At the Jukebox Discotheque {Ann-Marie will drive the PPT for this}
Katina: Athena Michaels
Eleanor: Herself
Corrie: Herself
Sandy Paul: Jennifer Clarke
John Riley: Himself
Nancy Newbie: Susan Zappan
British vendor: Tim Turner
French Publisher: Stephen Clark
[“I will Survive” and then “We Are Family” playing in the background]
Players enter to music. Dressed for discotheque. Milling around, grooving to the music, beer bottles in hand.
French Publisher: Bon soir mademoiselle. You are looking tres chic tonight. I work for an international publisher and have had 4 wives but am currently between wives, so would you care to dance with me?
Eleanor: Oh certainly, and you smell divine too, you are wearing some kind of fabulous French cologne. Just don’t get any ideas about me being your next acquisition.
French publisher: But of course, mais non! Just a dance, belle chere! [They dance]
British vendor: What a delightful venue! Reminds me of a London discotheque So, do you come here often? I currently have investments in 5 different companies, last time I checked. Would you care to dance?
Corrie: Sure, can you do the Electric Slide?
British vendor: My dear! I am a British gentleman, I am used to waltzing at the Proms..
Corrie: OK, let’s boogie! (Corrie grabs him and starts dancing)
Sandy Paul: Oh, This is one of my favorite songs! [We are Family starts playing]
John Riley: Me too, it’s perfect for the conference crowd.
Sandy Paul: I have to practice before I can do that one! {They dance}
Newbie Conference attendee: Wow, Katina, this is so much fun! Do ya’ll do this every year?
Katina: As long as Charleston is here we’ll be too. Thanks for coming for 30 years! Come on y’all….let’s all dance.
[Actors dance out of the room with Katina}
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Patron Driven Acquisitions Panel at ALA
Publisher Vendor Library Relations Committee ALA 2010
First of all I would like to thank the committee co-chairs Liz Lorbeer from the University of Alabama Health Sciences Library in Birmingham and Kim Steinle from Duke University Press for inviting me to address this topic from the point of view of a traditional book vendor and I would also like to thank Busca’s CEO Michael Cooper for choosing me to represent our company on the panel.
I have to admit that I have never seen an innovation take off as fast as Patron Initiated Purchase of E-Books (PIPE) or Patron Driven Access (PDA), as we would call it in our acronym addicted ALA groups. I first heard about it at our last PVLR or Publisher Vendor Librarian Relations committee meeting at Boston Midwinter and now everywhere I go I am hearing about pilot projects. It has taken off so fast that we might soon need to change the acronym of our own group from PVLR to just PV…Patron Vendor…or eventually just P…Patron only.
This new formula definitely fits Ranganathan’s 5 laws
Books are for use.
Every reader his [or her] book.
Every book its reader.
Save the time of the reader.
The library is a growing organism
Patron Initiated Purchase of Ebooks meets all of these criteria and we also know that researchers need quick access to information when they are on the track of a new discovery. But one thing we don’t know is where this will all end. With extremely tight book budgets there is not a lot of room for arbitrary purchases. Have you ever tried returning an ebook? Most of the studies I have seen showing that 40-50% of book purchases never circulate in an academic library are very dated (Hardest y,1981 & Kent, 1979). In our current economic environment I think librarians are already purchasing books on an “as needed basis,” so the patron driven model is already in place.
We are at the beginning of a process that can best be termed “disintermediation.” Just as travel agents, bookstores, record stores, and video stores got “disintermediated” or let’s just call it dissed from now on, libraries may be facing a similar future. We must be on the lookout for who is going to get dissed next in this new patron driven process: the vendor? The librarian? The publisher? Higher Education itself? Surely not the patron.
The vendor is definitely getting dissed as approval plans fall to patron driven models. Vendors are struggling to remain relevant in a market that has been flattened by the internet. The librarian too is getting dissed as the patron takes over. Staff cuts could reach the point where the only librarian left would be the one cutting the checks to the aggregators. This has already happened to corporate libraries.
Will the publisher get dissed? Already Amazon and Google and Barnes and Noble are launching publishing initiatives. Smaller publishers are getting squeezed by shrinking margins extracted by resellers such as Amazon which gets a 60% discount out of them. Then there is open access and self publishing. Over one million additional titles were added to Books in Print last year. Many of them were reprints, but nearly 200k were self published books. For better or worse Ebooks will open the floodgates of self publishing.
But publishers may have the last laugh as distributors themselves get dissed. Already ebooks are showing up on special interest sites and publishers are beginning to pursue micro marketing campaigns focused on special interest sites. In the academic sphere could we imagine ebooks migrating from libraries to course catalogues or to footnotes in journals and textbooks? And like a famous definition of God, Ebooks are now everywhere and nowhere at once.
But the other part of the patron ebook model, the ebook, has had a slower trajectory taking nearly 10 years to become popular. It took Kindle and now the iPad to break things open for the general public and possibly for libraries, even though most ebooks are still read on PC’s. But in an omen 2 year old in her stroller was recently observed holding an iPad and interacting with it…scrolling and manipulating the screen with dexterous little fingers. I would have given her a pop-up instead, but she is all ready for the future of books.
Unfortunately the ebook market has been marred by smoke mirrors reporting on sales and availability. Amazon kicked it off by reporting that sales of ebooks had surpassed print books on its site, and then it turned out that they were including free books and copyright free books in their statistics. Then Apple claimed to have cornered 22% of the ebook market in a matter of weeks. Again the numbers were suspect as free books were being included. I am not a Luddite and I do believe that the ebook moment has finally arrived, but accompanied by a lot of hype.
Think back to the launch of ebooks 10 years ago and the breathless marketing of the digital book. Then it turned out that most of the books in the databases were older, out of date publications that publishers were happy to repackage as something new. Obfuscation still clouds the waters when dealing with ebooks. They are not easier to read, they are not easier to comprehend, they are not cheaper than print books (in the academic marketplace…yet!), but they are easier to distribute. Amazon’s distribution model may be why they got into the ebook market in the first place as we now see Kindle editions for iPad, iPhone, Blackberry, and for the PC, all free apps.
I recently published a book and downloaded it onto Kindle for free. The whole process took less than 24 hours from download to worldwide exposure. Now even more people can skip buying my book. But it is much easier to promote without having to ship copies to all parts of the world and it will always be there, never going out of print. I am hoping it stimulates my print sales by allowing readers to preview chapters before purchase. It is also a model librarians might consider as patrons could actually add their own books to the catalogue. More “library as publisher” opportunities.
Back to pricing. Amazon got into a bit of a kerfuffle with Macmillan about pricing models and Macmillan sort of won by enforcing what is called an “agency model” meaning they get to name the price, not Amazon, but it only means that Macmillan will price out at $14.99 instead of $9.99 for its popular ebook titles. Amazon is pushing for even lower pricing arguing that publishers will do better by selling in volume (and it is now a worldwide market). Such pricing wars haven’t hit the academic market (yet). But there may be some movement in that direction if the “agency model” turns out to be deemed anticompetitive as such pricing for paper books has been judged. We have seen Amazon and even Wal-Mart willing to take a loss on best sellers to stimulate traffic to their stores. Could we see publishers go along with lower ebook pricing to stimulate sales of their other books? Just this week a price war broke out on e-readers. Will we soon see free ebook readers given away to stimulate ebook sales?
I recently did a quick comparison of pricing for some ebooks versus their print counterparts. Since so many ebooks are older imprints there are numerous print copies available on the used book market already. Books generally fall drastically in price once they are published as used copies hit the market. There is no such thing as a used ebook, yet. Another problem with ebooks is that publishers are holding back releasing the ebook until they have sold a sufficient quantity of the print version. Originally publishers were holding back 3 months, but now 6 months is more common.
What this does is give librarians the opportunity to obtain print copies inexpensively to accompany their ebook collections. Some consortia have even worked out arrangements where they are allowed to print 2 copies of each book in their ebook collection. Since ebooks are so unreadable librarians should prepare for an uptick in requests for print copies of their books, since ebook companies generally limit printing of their books.
Busca, as a traditional vendor, is an effective supplier of these one off requests. Larger vendors have generally discouraged orders for older imprints and smaller presses, preferring instead to focus on approval plans, while Busca and other traditional vendors have focused on the harder to get items. We see this as a great niche to be in and also many of the smaller presses will not be publishing ebooks, yet. Busca also offers a great out of print service where we search multiple sites for out of print books looking for the best condition and price. This differs from single source suppliers. We are also exploring offering a print service for free ebooks tied in with our book binding partner and we are also considering the Espresso Book Machine for the convergence of ebooks with Print on Demand services.
Busca is pursuing a dual track strategy keeping print options open, but we are also partnering with all of the major ebook aggregators and we are starting to add thousands of titles to our 5 million item database every month. We are also adding Spanish ebooks to our database. Our CEO travels frequently to Latin America and he attended the last Guadalajara Book Fair looking to make more contacts.
We are in the middle of project where libraries will be able to order individual ebooks from Busca using their catalogues. Ebrary has partnered with us to begin a pilot project by the end of the year. We forsee a continued demand for print as well as ebooks and simply want to be wherever the readers are.
Predictions:
1) All books published before 1923, the copyright free books, will all be free online. Once they are on the internet they can’t be controlled. Think what that will mean for the rare book trade and for interlibrary loan. Free ebooks will revolutionize the o.p. market, but there will still be demand for print copies, just more inexpensive ones. Truly rare books may become even more valuable, but will be considered museum artifacts.
2) The “Orphan books” that have been scanned by Google will not be a significant addition to the literature. The period between 1923 and let’s say 1960 was not an era of massive numbers of published books. The worthwhile ones are already in reprint. There’s a reason the others are orphans.
3) Because of the advances in Print on Demand all books will be available in dual editions print and e. Ebooks will be a way to see if you actually want a print copy.
4) Ebooks will continue to come down in price. The last high priced ones are science and technical publications and they are morphing into databases anyway, searchable by keywords and topics. Pay per view seems to be the way they will go. Why own them?
5) Vendors will have to concentrate on value added services to survive. With more staff cuts coming in libraries vendors have an obvious role to play. Handling rights and licensing could become a growth area for vendors.
6) Libraries will become “just in time” providers of information, whether ebooks or print books delivered from off site or by inter library loan or by a device such as the Espresso book machine.
7) Colleges and universities will be under enormous pressure to offer more courses online and at a lower cost. The library will morph into an information creating center as well as a provider of information.
8) The internet will go away and will be seen for the fad that really was…just checking to see if you were paying attention.
Let’s all get our digital assets up and moving and change the world.
I would like to close with a mention of a competitive reading device that was recently reviewed in Publishers Weekly:
“The power source is a mystery: there was no battery that our reporter could find, nor was he able to locate anything resembling a wireless antenna. Yet the bright ivory-white surface enabled our reader to make out 10-point text clearly in ambient light even at an astounding 20-degree reading angle.
Environmentalists will rejoice to hear that the device is almost completely green, containing no rare metals, toxic chemicals, sharp edges, or breakable components. However, its graphic display is so handsome that owners may prefer retaining it and integrating it as a decorating element in their homes
And now for the best part. Fully loaded you would expect to pay... how much? $300? $500? But this gadget comes in at a brain-bending $14.95! Watch it walk—yea, gallop!—out of the stores on launch day.”
Thank you. I hope you can visit us at buscainc.com soon.
First of all I would like to thank the committee co-chairs Liz Lorbeer from the University of Alabama Health Sciences Library in Birmingham and Kim Steinle from Duke University Press for inviting me to address this topic from the point of view of a traditional book vendor and I would also like to thank Busca’s CEO Michael Cooper for choosing me to represent our company on the panel.
I have to admit that I have never seen an innovation take off as fast as Patron Initiated Purchase of E-Books (PIPE) or Patron Driven Access (PDA), as we would call it in our acronym addicted ALA groups. I first heard about it at our last PVLR or Publisher Vendor Librarian Relations committee meeting at Boston Midwinter and now everywhere I go I am hearing about pilot projects. It has taken off so fast that we might soon need to change the acronym of our own group from PVLR to just PV…Patron Vendor…or eventually just P…Patron only.
This new formula definitely fits Ranganathan’s 5 laws
Books are for use.
Every reader his [or her] book.
Every book its reader.
Save the time of the reader.
The library is a growing organism
Patron Initiated Purchase of Ebooks meets all of these criteria and we also know that researchers need quick access to information when they are on the track of a new discovery. But one thing we don’t know is where this will all end. With extremely tight book budgets there is not a lot of room for arbitrary purchases. Have you ever tried returning an ebook? Most of the studies I have seen showing that 40-50% of book purchases never circulate in an academic library are very dated (Hardest y,1981 & Kent, 1979). In our current economic environment I think librarians are already purchasing books on an “as needed basis,” so the patron driven model is already in place.
We are at the beginning of a process that can best be termed “disintermediation.” Just as travel agents, bookstores, record stores, and video stores got “disintermediated” or let’s just call it dissed from now on, libraries may be facing a similar future. We must be on the lookout for who is going to get dissed next in this new patron driven process: the vendor? The librarian? The publisher? Higher Education itself? Surely not the patron.
The vendor is definitely getting dissed as approval plans fall to patron driven models. Vendors are struggling to remain relevant in a market that has been flattened by the internet. The librarian too is getting dissed as the patron takes over. Staff cuts could reach the point where the only librarian left would be the one cutting the checks to the aggregators. This has already happened to corporate libraries.
Will the publisher get dissed? Already Amazon and Google and Barnes and Noble are launching publishing initiatives. Smaller publishers are getting squeezed by shrinking margins extracted by resellers such as Amazon which gets a 60% discount out of them. Then there is open access and self publishing. Over one million additional titles were added to Books in Print last year. Many of them were reprints, but nearly 200k were self published books. For better or worse Ebooks will open the floodgates of self publishing.
But publishers may have the last laugh as distributors themselves get dissed. Already ebooks are showing up on special interest sites and publishers are beginning to pursue micro marketing campaigns focused on special interest sites. In the academic sphere could we imagine ebooks migrating from libraries to course catalogues or to footnotes in journals and textbooks? And like a famous definition of God, Ebooks are now everywhere and nowhere at once.
But the other part of the patron ebook model, the ebook, has had a slower trajectory taking nearly 10 years to become popular. It took Kindle and now the iPad to break things open for the general public and possibly for libraries, even though most ebooks are still read on PC’s. But in an omen 2 year old in her stroller was recently observed holding an iPad and interacting with it…scrolling and manipulating the screen with dexterous little fingers. I would have given her a pop-up instead, but she is all ready for the future of books.
Unfortunately the ebook market has been marred by smoke mirrors reporting on sales and availability. Amazon kicked it off by reporting that sales of ebooks had surpassed print books on its site, and then it turned out that they were including free books and copyright free books in their statistics. Then Apple claimed to have cornered 22% of the ebook market in a matter of weeks. Again the numbers were suspect as free books were being included. I am not a Luddite and I do believe that the ebook moment has finally arrived, but accompanied by a lot of hype.
Think back to the launch of ebooks 10 years ago and the breathless marketing of the digital book. Then it turned out that most of the books in the databases were older, out of date publications that publishers were happy to repackage as something new. Obfuscation still clouds the waters when dealing with ebooks. They are not easier to read, they are not easier to comprehend, they are not cheaper than print books (in the academic marketplace…yet!), but they are easier to distribute. Amazon’s distribution model may be why they got into the ebook market in the first place as we now see Kindle editions for iPad, iPhone, Blackberry, and for the PC, all free apps.
I recently published a book and downloaded it onto Kindle for free. The whole process took less than 24 hours from download to worldwide exposure. Now even more people can skip buying my book. But it is much easier to promote without having to ship copies to all parts of the world and it will always be there, never going out of print. I am hoping it stimulates my print sales by allowing readers to preview chapters before purchase. It is also a model librarians might consider as patrons could actually add their own books to the catalogue. More “library as publisher” opportunities.
Back to pricing. Amazon got into a bit of a kerfuffle with Macmillan about pricing models and Macmillan sort of won by enforcing what is called an “agency model” meaning they get to name the price, not Amazon, but it only means that Macmillan will price out at $14.99 instead of $9.99 for its popular ebook titles. Amazon is pushing for even lower pricing arguing that publishers will do better by selling in volume (and it is now a worldwide market). Such pricing wars haven’t hit the academic market (yet). But there may be some movement in that direction if the “agency model” turns out to be deemed anticompetitive as such pricing for paper books has been judged. We have seen Amazon and even Wal-Mart willing to take a loss on best sellers to stimulate traffic to their stores. Could we see publishers go along with lower ebook pricing to stimulate sales of their other books? Just this week a price war broke out on e-readers. Will we soon see free ebook readers given away to stimulate ebook sales?
I recently did a quick comparison of pricing for some ebooks versus their print counterparts. Since so many ebooks are older imprints there are numerous print copies available on the used book market already. Books generally fall drastically in price once they are published as used copies hit the market. There is no such thing as a used ebook, yet. Another problem with ebooks is that publishers are holding back releasing the ebook until they have sold a sufficient quantity of the print version. Originally publishers were holding back 3 months, but now 6 months is more common.
What this does is give librarians the opportunity to obtain print copies inexpensively to accompany their ebook collections. Some consortia have even worked out arrangements where they are allowed to print 2 copies of each book in their ebook collection. Since ebooks are so unreadable librarians should prepare for an uptick in requests for print copies of their books, since ebook companies generally limit printing of their books.
Busca, as a traditional vendor, is an effective supplier of these one off requests. Larger vendors have generally discouraged orders for older imprints and smaller presses, preferring instead to focus on approval plans, while Busca and other traditional vendors have focused on the harder to get items. We see this as a great niche to be in and also many of the smaller presses will not be publishing ebooks, yet. Busca also offers a great out of print service where we search multiple sites for out of print books looking for the best condition and price. This differs from single source suppliers. We are also exploring offering a print service for free ebooks tied in with our book binding partner and we are also considering the Espresso Book Machine for the convergence of ebooks with Print on Demand services.
Busca is pursuing a dual track strategy keeping print options open, but we are also partnering with all of the major ebook aggregators and we are starting to add thousands of titles to our 5 million item database every month. We are also adding Spanish ebooks to our database. Our CEO travels frequently to Latin America and he attended the last Guadalajara Book Fair looking to make more contacts.
We are in the middle of project where libraries will be able to order individual ebooks from Busca using their catalogues. Ebrary has partnered with us to begin a pilot project by the end of the year. We forsee a continued demand for print as well as ebooks and simply want to be wherever the readers are.
Predictions:
1) All books published before 1923, the copyright free books, will all be free online. Once they are on the internet they can’t be controlled. Think what that will mean for the rare book trade and for interlibrary loan. Free ebooks will revolutionize the o.p. market, but there will still be demand for print copies, just more inexpensive ones. Truly rare books may become even more valuable, but will be considered museum artifacts.
2) The “Orphan books” that have been scanned by Google will not be a significant addition to the literature. The period between 1923 and let’s say 1960 was not an era of massive numbers of published books. The worthwhile ones are already in reprint. There’s a reason the others are orphans.
3) Because of the advances in Print on Demand all books will be available in dual editions print and e. Ebooks will be a way to see if you actually want a print copy.
4) Ebooks will continue to come down in price. The last high priced ones are science and technical publications and they are morphing into databases anyway, searchable by keywords and topics. Pay per view seems to be the way they will go. Why own them?
5) Vendors will have to concentrate on value added services to survive. With more staff cuts coming in libraries vendors have an obvious role to play. Handling rights and licensing could become a growth area for vendors.
6) Libraries will become “just in time” providers of information, whether ebooks or print books delivered from off site or by inter library loan or by a device such as the Espresso book machine.
7) Colleges and universities will be under enormous pressure to offer more courses online and at a lower cost. The library will morph into an information creating center as well as a provider of information.
8) The internet will go away and will be seen for the fad that really was…just checking to see if you were paying attention.
Let’s all get our digital assets up and moving and change the world.
I would like to close with a mention of a competitive reading device that was recently reviewed in Publishers Weekly:
“The power source is a mystery: there was no battery that our reporter could find, nor was he able to locate anything resembling a wireless antenna. Yet the bright ivory-white surface enabled our reader to make out 10-point text clearly in ambient light even at an astounding 20-degree reading angle.
Environmentalists will rejoice to hear that the device is almost completely green, containing no rare metals, toxic chemicals, sharp edges, or breakable components. However, its graphic display is so handsome that owners may prefer retaining it and integrating it as a decorating element in their homes
And now for the best part. Fully loaded you would expect to pay... how much? $300? $500? But this gadget comes in at a brain-bending $14.95! Watch it walk—yea, gallop!—out of the stores on launch day.”
Thank you. I hope you can visit us at buscainc.com soon.
Friday, July 16, 2010
ALA Annual Conference 2010
Recently I returned from the American Library Association annual conference held
in Washington, DC. It was a great event, with high attendance, special performance
by Natalie Merchant singing poems, and DuPonts walking around in Circles.
BUSCA's dear friend and colleague, John D. Riley, participated in a panel discussion
about Patron Driven Acquisitions. John's white paper on this topic was presented
to an enthusiastic audience. We hope to soon post that white paper on this blog!
in Washington, DC. It was a great event, with high attendance, special performance
by Natalie Merchant singing poems, and DuPonts walking around in Circles.
BUSCA's dear friend and colleague, John D. Riley, participated in a panel discussion
about Patron Driven Acquisitions. John's white paper on this topic was presented
to an enthusiastic audience. We hope to soon post that white paper on this blog!
Thursday, May 27, 2010
Silently A Flower Blooms
This week I attended the ENY-ACRL regional conference of ASSOCIATION of COLLEGE
& RESEARCH LIBRARIES held in Hamilton, New York at COLGATE UNIVERSITY.
While on campus I visited CHAPEL HOUSE. There I discovered this poem written by
a former Chapel House guest, Abbot Zenkei Shibayama Roshi of NANZENJI MONASTERY
in Kyoto, JAPAN.
SILENTLY A FLOWER BLOOMS
In silence it falls away;
Yet here now, at this moment, at this place,
the whole of the flower, the whole of the world
is blooming.
This is the talk of the flower, the truth of
the blossom
The glory of eternal life is shining here.
& RESEARCH LIBRARIES held in Hamilton, New York at COLGATE UNIVERSITY.
While on campus I visited CHAPEL HOUSE. There I discovered this poem written by
a former Chapel House guest, Abbot Zenkei Shibayama Roshi of NANZENJI MONASTERY
in Kyoto, JAPAN.
SILENTLY A FLOWER BLOOMS
In silence it falls away;
Yet here now, at this moment, at this place,
the whole of the flower, the whole of the world
is blooming.
This is the talk of the flower, the truth of
the blossom
The glory of eternal life is shining here.