Hooray for HarperCollins' Employees ... Intro to 'Occupy Lit'

All our country's current unrest and angst RE Wall Street's hypocritical machinations, lying and downright greed has not gone unnoticed by the publishing world ... Especially since the publishing world (at least in part) is knee-deep in that very same greed!

But, here comes the righteous to smite the bad, greedy bastards and put them in their place (actually their place is so very far below this earth they can't be hit hard enough to go there; but, they WILL find their way there eventually).

The gallant, righteous heroes in this case are the employees of News Corp-owned book publishing company HarperCollins ... And you know who owns HarperCollins today: Rupert Murdoch, the poster child for the 1%'s greed.

This by Rosie Gray of 'The Runnin Scared Blog' in The Village Voice: 

Occupy Lit: Publishing Employees to Rally Against HarperCollins

Spotted at Occupy Wall Street by the Observer: employees of News Corp-owned book publishing company HarperCollins are staging a rally next Wednesday, making this the latest union action to throw its lot in with OWS.


"Employees of HarperCollins have been working without a contract for almost a year," the flier reads. "Management wants to eliminate guaranteed wage increases, double the cost of health benefits and eviscerate layoff and seniority protection."

It continues, "HarperCollins is a highly profitable commercial publisher and is owned by RUPERT MURDOCH, poster child for the 1%'s greed. Please join us for a lunch hour rally in support of the dedicated HarperCollins staff."

Unionized HarperCollins employees are members of UAW Local 2110 [disclosure: Village Voice union members are also represented by that union but have nothing to do with the HarperCollins rally]. According to UAW Local 2110 recording secretary Eden Schulz, the HarperCollins bargaining unit is about 200 people. "I wouldn't say most of the positions are in the bargaining unit, but we represent a huge chunk," she said. She noted that starting salaries at HarperCollins are about $30,000.


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When You Merge Newspaper Format With Web Capabilities What Do You Get?

What do you get with subject merger? A complex content, digital newspaper that updates in real time and in 3D clarity and color just to name some benefits.

Believe me, this concept was inevitably coming anyway...BUT, Rupert Murdoch's Daily was the first to materialize.

It won't be the last.

As far as I can interpret, the Daily will only be available through the iPad...This could be a problem that grows down the road. I suspect that future digital newspapers will be apped out so they can be accessed on all devices.

It will be interesting to observe the success of the subscription concept and rate
(99 US cents a week or $39.99 a year). Will the Daily be the future business model that will save newspapers?

Rob Spiegel of MacNewsWorld writes this (picked up through E-Commerce Times):

The Daily on the iPad Could Ring In New Publishing Era

"The Daily is an innovative showcase for what a newspaper can do in the modern tablet era," said tech analyst Azita Arvani. "It is an explosion of all types of content in a stunning layout. The Daily app design is very Applesque: beautiful and intuitive. ... You can flip the paper around like a newspaper, watch videos, etc. ... I think we have seen the future of the newspaper. It looks good!"

Rupert Murdoch and News Corp. (Nasdaq: NWS) hope to revolutionize the way readers experience the newspaper. On Wednesday, News Corp. unveiled and launched its iPad-exclusive digital "paper" called The Daily. Held at the Guggenheim Museum in New York, the launch was hosted by News Corp. Chairman Richard Murdoch and Apple (Nasdaq: AAPL) Vice President of Internet Services Eddy Cue. The Daily will integrate different forms of media, including, text, video, audio and social networks.

The Daily will be free for its first two weeks and then 99 US cents a week or $39.99 a year. The publication includes advertising . The Daily will collect subscription dollars through a new platform for subscriptions in iTunes.

The publication contains a carousel of tiles representing different stories. Readers can shuffle unread stories and read in random order. Professional audio readings of top stories are available, so it can be used like a radio. Top stories are hosted by an anchor.

Breaking news is delivered throughout the day to subscribers. The Daily will take advantage of iPad technology by presenting HD videos and 360-degree pictures. Users will have the ability to share articles to Twitter, Facebook and email. They can also opt to view Twitter feeds pertaining to stories. Other sections include customizable sports, weather, games and crossword content.

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Murdoch's "Digital Newsstand" is Belly-Up

I have followed Rupert Murdoch's "digital newsstand" idea for some time (see following previous posts for background:
http://johnaustinblog.blogspot.com/search/label/monetizing%20online%20newspapers
http://johnaustinblog.blogspot.com/2010/06/mobile-publishing-has-ticket-to-ride.html
http://johnaustinblog.blogspot.com/2010/04/digital-newsstand-how-magazines-will-be.html

Due to his wanting to control all the subscribers' list data demographics, and not even sharing this info with those newspaper publishers participating in his digital newsstand, he has not been able to generate any interest from other publishers in joining his online newsstand! Duh, I wonder why?

David Zax , of FastCompany.com, reports more intriguing details:

Project Alesia, one year and $30 million in the making, would have bundled online subscriptions to magazines and newspapers, but publishers weren't interested.

Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. is ditching an idea one year and $31.5 million in the making: an online newsstand that would have bundled online subscriptions to newspapers and magazine. "Project Alesia," as it was called, is being abandoned for lack of interest among the publishers News Corp. had pitched.

Reuters' source says that Alesia is just on hold, but MediaWeek claims the decision is absolute: "an entire, dedicated News Corp U.K. operation being dismantled just days before a product was due to go on market." Over a hundred people were working on the project; most have been reassigned elsewhere.

Read & enjoy more http://alturl.com/mvusx

Everything Just Can’t be Free Forever!

Giant newspaper publisher Rupert Murdoch has been trying to figure out how to charge for online news for some time...He already has some success with The Wall Street Journal, but, this is a paper geared toward business people who expect to pay for so-called propriety news...He is trying to monetize other online consumer news to save the newspaper industry (really his own hide)...Seems advertizing income and subscriptions are way down!

Some simple questions by this outsider simpleton:

1- If your online product represents the gold standard in your niche, why should online advertising go down? If you can implement the attitude that you only accept ads from the top and true businesses and they have been suitably vetted, I would think advertisers would be knocking your door down to get to you (and into this sppecial ad category) with money in hand!

2- Why not get a letter of agreement between all major newspaper publishers to give say 40% of online news free with some payment for remaining news...or something similar? I think this is where old Rupert is falling short...You know, getting the old consortium.

Truthfully, I feel that the conglomerate that Murdoch has built up in the newspaper business is bad for this country, by any standard, and should definitely be broken up. Especially since he and his papers represent a drastically one-sided (and therefore short-sided) point of view that favors Wall Street (big business...often greedy & crooked) over Main Street (the majority of the country and the main purpose for it's existence...of, by and for the people; and all that stuff.

Rupert, old chap, you can't take it with you when you die...You're going out the same way you came in...naked and poor.

Frank Reed of Marketing Pilgrim reports this:

Earlier this month I explored the idea that Rupert Murdoch’s impending paywall announcement was just that; impending. In a News Corp earnings call he said that the publishing giant would have something to announce in 3-4 weeks regarding a group of publishers that would be banding together to take specialized content and put it in an area that would require a subscription for access. The conventional wisdom, even for someone as adamant about the need to paywalls now, is that there needs to be a consortium of sorts to make this a reality.

Well, we are just about at the 3-week point of this self-imposed time line and there are some doubts as to just how real this whole deal is. Peter Kafka of All Things Digital reported earlier this week.

Within the next two weeks or so, we’re supposed to hear about Rupert Murdoch’s digital news subscription service–the one he has been trying to put together for many months.

One problem: That service is supposed to feature content from publications other than those owned by Murdoch. And sources familiar with News Corp.’s plans tell me Murdoch has yet to sign partners on to the venture.

Read more at Marketing Pilgrim: http://alturl.com/hu4s

Rupert Murdoch, Paywalls and Why It's Hard to Charge for Quality Bagels

"Rupert Murdoch, Paywalls and Why It's Hard to Charge for Quality Bagels" Writers Thought for The Day on John R. Austin-Writer Get this inside analysis @ http://alturl.com/o77a