The New Way Publishers Monetize Content? - Writers Forum

SeattleCPA · 07-13-2007, 09:27 AM

Say I know this probably isn't exactly a Wall Street Journal crowd, but if you're at library in next few days or happen to have access to the WSJ in some other way, it's truly worthwhile to take a peek at the July 2nd issue which describes how John Wiley & Sons (which publishes the Dummies books, Frommers travel guides and CliffNotes) is monetizing content via their web sites.

In a nutshell, what they're doing is taking content (chapters from books, etc.), sticking the stuff up on web pages, and then selling advertising for those pages. The article reported Wiley currently makes between $10M and $15M a year doing this.

This change or trend or whatever is both scary... and exciting. The economics of some types of book publishing may be evolving pretty rapidly.

Colwyn Quaffer · 07-13-2007, 10:25 AM

It is exciting but... I hate reading books on the net. I dunno, is there a big ebook market out there? I think the majority of people prefer to read paper, as it were.

However, if it takes off it could bring a whole new dimension to literary marketing.

lin · 07-13-2007, 12:31 PM

I don't see what's scary about it.
And how is that radically different from record companies licensing radio stations to play thei music and selling ads based on listener base?

jesterscourt · 07-13-2007, 04:11 PM

I forget the term, but it reminded me of that issue when certain websites will load up their page with every imaginable term, buzzword, product, service, in microscopic font, in white, behind a css table or something, to get higher on Google searches. It's despicable. I realize that's not what Wiley and Sons are doing, but the fact that people are trying to cheat the system out there is sadly a reality that we'll have to deal with. Imagine trying to find that page via a search and some spammer/scammer finds all the keywords on the Dummies page and sucks up some of the intended hits...

wmd · 07-13-2007, 06:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jesterscourt

...but the fact that people are trying to cheat the system out there is sadly a reality that we'll have to deal with. Imagine

Who said anything about cheating the system?

I think this will become more common place with non-fiction such as the dummies books, because the interenet is really the first place people go for research anymore.

I don't think it will be as popular with fiction.

Myself, I like the tangibility of a good book. I will research things online, but if I am really trying to learn about things I will go buy a book that I can thumb through.