1. POSTCARD FROM BISG IN NEW YORK
Can publishers learn anything about electronic applications from the music industry? Whats new at BISG?

2. A HEADHUNTER WRITES TO MR. BEZOS
Hey Jeff, how about a book?

3. FOREWORD PARTNERS WITH RIGHTSWORLD
The leading marketplace for publishing rights will feature a reviews section written by the reviewers of ForeWord Magazine.

1. POSTCARD FROM BISG IN NEW YORK

Standardization (a common language); multi-platform support (access by wireless, download, portables, what have you); inter-operability (different devices should talk to each other); and a balance between content protection and user-friendly access (if you make it too hard, piracy will be rampant): these are the chief lessons a panel of music industry executives passed along to a hundred or so of their book media counterparts in the McGraw-Hill Building auditorium.

Kevin Conroy, newly appointed head of AOL Music, highlighted the common barriers publishers and music people share in a disconnect with their customers by relying third parties (re-sellers) to reach them. Cary Sherman, Senior Executive VP of the Recording Industry Association of America, told of their industrys futile efforts, whether through lawsuit or education, to put the piracy genie back in the bottle. Lesson? Dont waste energy trying to protect the business models of the past. Find value propositions that work in the technologies of the present.

Larry Miller, President of Reciprocal Entertainment, reiterated the importance of balance in rights management, when he said, "In the last six years content has been made secure - so much so that nobody can get at it."

Brian Queen, Solutions Manager for Electronic Media Management System (EMMS) at IBM, suggested that the downstream transformation for music and books is to move from providing a packaged product to providing a service (access to subscription libraries, value enhancements to content display, archival services, etc.).

Publishers: The Differences Are At Least As Important

Leading off for the publishers, Steven Brill, publisher of Brills Content and Contentville.com, expressed what most publishers in the room felt - namely that the differences between the music business and the book publishing business are more important than the similarities. To this commentator the way in which popular culture uses music and uses books, and the nature of the medium require and permit techniques that are significantly different. On the other hand, as text, audio, and video converge in multi-media platforms and products, content management issues will begin to be wrapped up with each other.

Michael Miron, CEO of Content Guard, once again acquitted himself as one of the more astute, independent and articulate thinkers who appears on the panel circuit these days (Watch for an interview with him in next weeks FTW.). Pointing out that there is no single solution to these challenges, and that e-publishing and e-books are not one and the same, Miron counsels us to look for business models and product opportunities that recognize the two powerful forces that define digital publishing - a product delivery medium with no marginal costs after introduction so that on-demand and customization become as economically viable - if not more so -- than mass production.

The book-publishing difference was underscored when MJ Rose of Wired News described some niche audience Internet electronic publishing success stories and their monthly download volume: ictionware.com (10,000), Discover.com (6,000) and BookLocker.com (3,000). All are charging in the $4-$7 range and providing 50-70% royalties. She pointed to the potential for author co-ops, the fact that people will still want to keep or collect p-books, and that giving away e-books would probably stimulate more p-book sales.

Note: Asking around for information about how much business people were actually doing, someone asserted that Perseus moved 45,000 print on demand orders last month.

Disruptive Technologies. Also BISG HouseKeeping

A thought-provoking and very useful keynote was delivered by Michael Overdorff, chairman and CEO of Innosight (www.innosight.com) tracing how the theory of "disruptive technologies" apply to the music and publishing industries. Anyone interested in innovative strategic thinking should get Clayton Christensens book, the Innovators Dilemma: When New Technologies Cause Great Firms to Fail. It explains how established companies do not find value in new technologies since their focus is on the maintenance and improvement of old technologies - an oversimplification. Go to the website or get the book.

The whole event was organized by another panel circuit regular, the affable David Palmer, now a consultant on e-publishing strategy and business development for IBMs EMMS. It was hosted by Charles Benante, eBusiness Vice President at the Pearson Technology Center, who is Chairperson of BISGs New Technology Interest Group.

Gamely pinch-hitting for the recently resigned Sandy Paul (who is now enjoying the sun in Florida while we in the Catskills are accumulating a few feet of snow), Bill Raggio coordinated another successful and useful BISG Technology Interest Group afternoon of panels. Raggio tells me that there are
about four finalists for the BISG directors position, and a choice may be made by mid-month. His own intentions may be to head South and get into teaching.

-Gene Schwartz, Editor-at-Large

2. A HEADHUNTER WRITES TO MR. BEZOS

Dear Mr. Bezos,

I write to express my sympathy for the position you are in of laying off so many of the fine individuals that have brought Amazon.com so very close to profitability. As a professional recruiter, I understand the way business operates and know that, unfortunately, you have to do what serves your investors. I would like to acknowledge the good faith youre showing in taking care of employees with virtually worthless stock options by instituting your "new option" program. I would also like to suggest yet another "option" to offer your displaced former team members: the option of not facing as much rat-race as they begin their quest for new employment.

Id like to propose that you extend further goodwill to your departing cohorts by providing them with a copy of one of your own stocked books, Headhunters Revealed! Career Secrets for Choosing and Using Professional Recruiters. No matter what accounting methods you use, I believe this slight investment to ease the job search of these former associates would net you very high in "social awareness" profits. Lets face it: they are being dumped into a laid-off workforce which grows by the hour. With "insider secrets" of not only how to use the search industry for their own benefit but the entire philosophy of Lifetime Career Management, you would literally set them up for the rest of their employed life.

What a phenomenal gesture to your home community of Seattle, not to mention the Georgians, to display such caring for those people whove helped bring your company to the brink of the black. It might even serve to quell your burgeoning union movement to show that your company truly does everything possible to "take care of its own." Finally, as more companies announce every day that yet more unfortunates will be joining the ranks of the unemployed, wouldnt you set a fine example of a most empowering parting gift?

In your position, I know what matters above all else is numbers, so let me break it down for you. At the $14.95 retail price, you already purchase Headhunters Revealed! at $6.73. Simple multiplication means that it would only cost Amazon.com $8,749 to equip each out-placed worker with all the "hunting gear" they need. Or, if you wanted to take yet another small step in the direction of altruism, you could give each individual their own autographed copy: if you'll notice your "blue box" on the Headhunters Revealed! page, a personally autographed copy is only slightly more ($17.95) and, at your discounted purchase price of $8.08, your investment only rises to $10,504. After all, considering your projected sales for 2001 at $3.5 billion, what price kindness?

To break it down further, given that your present cut-backs will result in a charge of $150,000,000 on your financials this year, upping this only slightly to $150,010,504 does not seem a large price to pay for the social seeds youd be sowing. Though investors are concerned with how quickly the company has been using its cash, we both know that theyd never notice this small outlay--and youd feel so much warmer and cozier when you sleep at night. Finally, though you are projecting to have $650,000,000 in cash by the end of this quarter, and $900,000,000 by the end of the year, doesnt your heart take a giant leap forward from simply nudging these numbers to $649,989,496 and $899,989,496, respectively?

Again, and in closing, rather than conventional measures of profits and losses, your organization prefers to utilize "pro-forma" accounting methods. "Pro-forma" is defined by Webster's New World Dictionary as "for (the sake of) form; as a matter of form." I offer to you the opportunity to show substantial "good form" in this regrettable turn of business by outfitting your leaving bookselling brethren with the best, bound "walking papers" available.

I wish you all the best, and ever-increasing prosperity.

Very truly yours,

Darrell W. Gurney, CPC
The Career Meister

3. FOREWORD PARTNERS WITH RIGHTSWORLD

Rightsworld.com, the leading marketplace for publishing rights, and ForeWord Magazine today announced a strategic relationship. In their agreement, rightsworld.com will feature a reviews section written by ForeWord Magazine, the only trade review journal devoted to the work of independent publishers. The reviews section will also promote rights for sale with direct links to rights auctions on rightsworld.com. The first month includes reviews and links to rights information from books published by Career Press, Princeton Architectural Press, F&W Publications, Sourcebooks, and Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.

Rightsworld.com is the leading marketplace where publishers, agents and authors can connect to close rights deals online. It is an easy-to-use, secure, and inexpensive way for independent publishers to access the subsidiary rights market. ForeWord Magazine is the leading publication for independent publishing and has been providing news and reviews to the trade since 1998.

"We've always been huge fans of ForeWord Magazine because rightsworld.com and ForeWord cater to the same market, independent publishing," said Eric Miller, CEO at rightsworld.com. "We're very happy to be combining forces to discover great titles from independent publishers and the rights to those titles to a broad marketplace."

"Our vision for the future of publishing rests on the shoulders of successful independent presses," said Victoria Sutherland, publisher of Foreword Magazine. "Working with rightsworld only strengthens our mission to better serve them and provide new opportunities for creating an enhanced awareness of their offerings."

About rightsworld.com

Rightsworld.com is the most efficient, easiest-to-use rights marketplace where publishers, agents, scouts and authors can actually close rights deals online. The company is headquartered in New York City with offices in Austin, Texas, and Barcelona, Spain. The company was founded in 1999 and is privately held.

About ForeWord Magazine