Rice University has launched OpenStax College, which will offer free, open-source course materials for five common introductory classes in biology, astronomy, and physiology. OpenStax is funded by grants from the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the 20 Million Minds Foundation and the Maxfield Foundation, and the program hopes to capture 10 percent of the textbook market that, in turn, would save students $90 million over the next five years. Inside Higher Ed reports that “In the past, open-source materials have failed to gain traction among some professors; their accuracy could be difficult to confirm […]
Publisher services
eNews: Penguin Launches Mobile Platform; Self-Publishing Capabilities From Nelson Literary Agency
Penguin has launched a new digital/mobile toolkit, My Artist’s Way Toolkit & App, based on Julia Cameron’s 2 million copy-selling 1992 book The Artist’s Way. The platform, which will be offered as a $4.99 monthly subscription (or $3.99 a month for those who sign up for a one-year plan) with daily inspirations and weekly exercises and activities. Global digital director Molly Barton said in a statement that the platform is one “that we anticipate using for future Penguin works.” Add the Nelson Literary Agency to the list of agencies establishing ways to help their clients self-publish. Their Digital Liason Platform, […]
eNews: Thomas Allen Offer Digital Shorts Through Indie Websites; Judy Blume Classics in Digital Format; and More
Thomas Allen and Cormorant Books have partnered for a new digital short story initiative called cStories, ePub files that can be bought through independent booksellers’ websites for $1.99. Transcontinental Media will manage downloads and digital warehousing, taking a 10 percent share of revenues. (Thomas Allen & Cormorant will take 50 percent, while 40 per cent will go to booksellers.) “This is our way of helping independent booksellers be involved in digital retailing,” Thomas Allen marketing manager David Glover told Quill & Quire. “We know if people begin to read these stories, they’ll want more.” In other eNews, Penguin Children’s is […]
eNews: Anobii Prepares to Sell eBooks; Freethy Sells 1 Million Self-Published Books; and More
UK-based social book recommendation site Anobii announced that as part of their coming relaunch, they have reached agreements to sell ebooks from more than 10 publishers, including the UK divisions of Penguin, Random House, Harper Collins, Hachette, Bloomsbury, Harlequin and Wiley, along with Pan Macmillan, Faber & Faber and Canongate. Digital editions will be available for sale as of the end of October, with print books to follow at a later date. get them instantly on their free Anobii ebook apps. They will have Anobii iOS reading apps at launch, and plan to add Android apps “shortly.” Their cloud-based service […]
Bowker Details 10-Country eBook Survey, and More eNews
As previewed at Monday’s Publishers Launch Conference, on Wednesday Bowker announced full details on the expansion of their consumer research into ebooks beyond the US and UK. They will conduct a new annual study, starting in January 2012 (for presentation in March), to chart the state of consumer ebook and ereading device use and acceptance around the world. They will gather additional data samples from Germany, France, Spain, India, Australia, Brazil, South Korea and Japan, in collaboration with companies including A.T. Kearney, the Book Industry Study Group, Pearson and Tata Consultancy Services. In other enews, Ectaco is demonstrating their JetBook Color […]
Bloomsbury Readies Digital Distribution Service
As Perseus expands their digital distribution to agents and authors, Bloomsbury is preparing a direct competitor to Constellation, Faber Factory and other ebook distribution platforms for publishers. Launching soon, the new service, called Bloomsbury Connect, has been in development for months under the direction of managing director, group sales and marketing Evan Schnittman. It’s a companion to the Bloomsbury Reader program, announced in April, which launched last week with almost 600 titles. As Schnittman explains, Bloomsbury Connect is a “service solution,” focused on publishers, while Bloomsbury Reader is a full “publishing solution” for out-of-print titles, focused on agencies and estates. Bloomsbury Connect […]