The Container is not the Content

Digital Publishing Costs, Concerns, and Pricing

Michael Jon Jensen, Electronic Publisher
The Johns Hopkins University Press
michael.jensen@jhu.edu

This document will be available at:

http://www.press.jhu.edu/~mjensen/char-cst.html
Online version: click on page content to jump to next segment.

 

 

 

 

 

The Internet is a giant disintermediation machine.

online meme

Disintermediation is a mundane revolution, seemingly obvious, but changing everything.

mundane, obvious, revolutionary truth

 

 

 

 

 

 

General Points

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Prejudices

 

 

 

 

 

 

Concrete Examples

 

 

 

 

 

 

Most publishers are floundering

(or is that "exploring"?)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

More than at any time,
price is form-, content-, and use-driven, not container-driven

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pricing Issues:

Publication Form(s) Spectrum

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pricing Issues:

Use(s) Spectrum

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pricing Issues:

Audience(s) Spectrum

 

 

 

 

 

 

More than at any time,
institutional sales can dramatically affect individual sales

 

 

 

 

 

 

New and Semi-New Pricing Models

 

 

 

 

 

 

Intangibles

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don't be fooled into thinking e-publication is dirt cheap:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Principles of Purchase: some spectra

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vote with your budgets, speak out, avoid reflex responses,
and be willing to listen to the fears (and visions) of nonprofit publishers.
Work with publishers over the next two years to influence the
digital information eco- (or econo-) system.
Work especially with the publishers and nonprofits whose goals match your own.
May the best model win.
This document will be available at:

http://www.press.jhu.edu/~mjensen/char-cst.html