This is a blog about books and reading
Two ongoing battles surround the proposed deal to combine two of the world’s largest publishers and the financial woes of a former New York governor.
The deal, worth a reported $2.175 billion USD, has already been the subject of opposition among many players inside and outside the publishing industry.
As big North American publishers become ever bigger, authors lose opportunities to place their work and readers lose the chance to avail themselves of riskier books.
Publishers are increasingly relying on morals clauses to shield them from blowback should an author’s bad behaviour become public scandal.
The potential combined market clout of two major multinationals provides potential negative results for independent publishers, authors, and readers alike.
The publishers’ suit argues that the Internet Archive is engaging in wholesale piracy by offering users free access to in-copyright books.