Blog: publishing

To paraphrase a proverb on the inevitability of change, ‘It is astonishing how long things can continue and how quickly they can fall’. The NME’s swift announcement of a final issue certainly aligns with this prophecy.

Former President and CEO of Netscape James L. Barksdale once said he knew of two ways to make money, ‘Bundling and Unbundling’. Whilst much of the focus has been on the unbundling factor of media, with consumers increasingly opting for more affordable SVOD services over cumbersome and expensive Pay-TV offerings, we could soon see another re-bundling factor occur.

Having created a next-gen music publisher in BMG, German media giant Bertlesmann are applying a similar strategy to their publishing division. Consistent with BMG’s tactic of investing heavily in legacy music publishing assets as well as niche Indie labels, Bertlesmann are doubling down on their most valuable publishing asset by moving to acquire an increased stake in Penguin Random House.

Having created Wikipedia, one of the most widely read sites in the history of the World Wide Web, Jimmy Wales is aware of the complexities and pitfalls when it comes to managing the authenticity of information.