This week’s newsletter is bursting with links, I don’t think I can hold it for another day. Hope you find them useful!
Also, please note that it looks much better at https://www.getrevue.co/profile/ksandler1 — please subscribe there for the best experience. Thanks!
Innovation
New York Fashion Week show staged with 7-foot-tall holographic models — www.cnn.com
The Kanye West-backed label Maisie Wilen presented a new collection of cyber-inspired clothes through a mindbending show that blurred the lines between virtual and real. #AR
Snapchat partners with Ticketmaster to match users with live events near them — techcrunch.com
Snapchat is partnering with Ticketmaster to launch a new way for users to discover live entertainment events within the Snap Map. The new feature will be accessible through a new in-app Mini. For context, Snap Minis are third-party programs that live inside Snapchat’s Chat section.
What might web3 mean for publishing and advertising?
HT @BoSacks Last year saw the first real Web3 experiments from publishers and advertisers. What might web3 mean for businesses in the space? #Web3
Technology
Snapchat will introduce revenue sharing on ads in creators’ stories — techcrunch.com
Snap announced that it plans to introduce mid-roll advertisements during Snapchat stories for Snap Stars (which is what the platform calls its biggest creators, who must apply for the Snap Star distinction). #advertising
Marketplace suspends most NFT sales, citing ‘rampant’ fakes and plagiarism
www.reuters.com
The platform which sold an NFT of Jack Dorsey’s first tweet for $2.9 million has halted most transactions because people were selling tokens of content that did not belong to them.
Phishing on the Opensea
dirtybubblemedia.substack.com
Scammer used legitimate Opensea buy contract as a “blank check” to clean out victim wallets; stolen NFTs then sold using Opensea’s platform
Universal Music NFTs
Media Giant Fremantle Partners With Theta for NFT
Media giant Fremantle has partnered with Theta Labs to launch the NFTs for the 50th season of its show The Price Is Right. #teamPRH
The Hidden Image Descriptions Making the Internet Accessible — www.nytimes.com
HT @LauraB7 Terrific image description primer. The challenge of describing every image on the internet, and the people who are trying. #a11y
AI Alt Text Fails to Find the Beauty Between the Pixels
HT @LauraB7. AI is an amazing tool that improves our lives in many ways. But is it ready to replace humans? In the case of writing Alt Text, probably not.
Two US Big Tech antitrust bills backed by publisher trade group
A group representing publishers such as News Corp and National Public Radio wrote to leaders of the Senate Judiciary Committee to back two bills targeting Big Tech, including one that would open up smartphone app stores to more competition.
Chip Errors Are Becoming More Common and Harder to Track Down
www.nytimes.com
As the largest computer networks continue to grow, some engineers fear that their smallest components could prove to be an Achilles’ heel.
Facebook’s news feed will now be known as just the “feed,” a change that comes as the company tackles misinformation
Google plans Android privacy change similar to Apple’s, which wiped $230 billion off Facebook’s market cap
www.cnbc.com
Google said it will continue to support the current identifiers for the next two years.
Spotify acquires Podsights and Chartable to advance its podcasting business
Spotify Inc deepened its investment in podcasting with the acquisitions of Podsights and Chartable, two services that provide greater insights for advertisers and podcasting publishers. #podcasting
Amazon & Visa Reach Agreement With on Credit Card Payment Fees
Amazon + Visa reached a global agreement, ending a dispute over Visa’s payment processing fees. Amazon UK customers can continue using Visa to make purchases on Amazon + Amazon will remove a surcharge on Visa transactions in Singapore and Australia.
Thanks to Amazon, warehouse rents have never been higher
Amazon is buying all the warehouses — Over the past 2 years, they more than doubled warehouse holdings from 192 million square feet at the end of 2019 to more than 410 million square feet today
Publishing & Media
How a Book Is Made — www.nytimes.com
Have you ever wondered how a book becomes a book? Join us as we follow Marlon James’s “Moon Witch, Spider King” through the printing process.
The difference between audio, audiobooks, ebooks w media overlays, and assistive technologies
Jenna Bush Hager Has First-Look Deal with Universal for Book Adaptations
lunch.publishersmarketplace.com
Why Amazon’s New LGTBQ+ Children’s Category Matters — www.publishersweekly.com
A marketing director argues that Amazon’s new LGBTQ+ category for children’s books should have existed all along
Pitch Wars and #PitMad are ending after 10 years — pitchwars.org
Yale Publishing Course Suspended “For the Foreseeable Future”
lunch.publishersmarketplace.com
The Yale School of Management Executive Education announced that it will not host the week-long Yale Publishing Course, due to the pandemic. “Sadly, due to the shifting industry landscape and repercussions of the global pandemic, Yale Executive Education will not be hosting the Yale Publishing Course for the foreseeable future,” the announcement said.
PRH Ranks #4 on Forbes List of America’s Best Midsize Employers
ICYMI Congrats #TeamPRH!
Publishing C.E.O. Donates $500,000 to Fight Book Bans — www.nytimes.com
ICYMI Markus Dohle, the chief executive of Penguin Random House, said the effort “ties into the future of our democracy.” #teamPRH
How Faith-Based, Right-Wing Money Is Waging War Through Book Challenges
This is crazy! Follow the money.
Students sue Wentzville School District over book banning
The kids are alright! A pair of Missouri high school students sued the Wentzville School District over its decision to ban certain books, incl Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye + Kiese Laymon’s memoir Heavy #bannedbooks
Committees Convened to Review 16 Books in Polk County, FL, Schools — www.slj.com
RT @sljournal #Censorship Roundup: A look at censorship attempts across the country includes book complaints in Florida, Kansas, and North Carolina, and book-targeting legislation in Indiana, Tennessee, and Georgia.
Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine, World of Women Partner to Adapt NFTs Into Movies, TV Shows, live events — variety.com
Mindy Kaling and Amazon Launch Mindy’s Book Studio
Mindy Kaling, Amazon Publishing, and Amazon Studios announced the launch of Mindy’s Book Studio, a boutique story studio that will publish books selected by Kaling from emerging and established voices starting in late 2022.
CEDRO In Spain: Tackling Book Piracy With Sports Technology
Using monitoring systems developed for use in sports and technology content, LaLiga will scan for book piracy activity online. Via @pubperspectives #piracy
Italy’s Publishers Report a Crisis in Paper Costs, Art and Travel Books, w production costs rising 90% over last year
‘We are faced with two emergencies’ in paper costs and the state of art-book and tourism publishing, says AIE’s leadership from Italy. #paper #production
ResearchGate Must Take Down Elsevier Articles, German Court Rules
The publisher of Reader’s Digest plans to fill more than 100 roles in 2022, spread between editorial and commercial departments
Food52 brings in new leadership, plans to launch its own pantry line, open its first retail location in New York, and move its headquarters out of Manhattan
A breakdown from Disney Animation Studios of their filmmaking process — disneyanimation.com
Sweet! HT @neilperkin
BuzzFeed Studios creating films for streamers and studios
Gregory Peck’s Daughter and Others Keep ‘Mockingbird’ Sequel Rights — www.nytimes.com
In a settlement agreement, the estate of Harper Lee, who wrote “To Kill a Mockingbird,” renewed the movie sequel and remake rights of Cecilia Peck and other successors and heirs to the makers of the original 1962 film.
‘New Yorker’ Publishes First Online-Only Edition, ‘The New Yorker’ Interviews’
Quartz launches new Africa membership product to monetize investors’ interest
The business news publisher has found a loyal audience keen on African unicorns and startups. It has now created a cheaper and more focused subscription just for this reader group.
Magazine Giant Condé Nast Posts First Profit in Years
www.wsj.com
The magazine giant attributes the feat to strong digital-revenue growth and cost savings from reorganizing its global operations, saying it generated nearly $2 billion in revenue last year.
Hearst Magazines adopts LiveRamp’s ‘Authenticated Traffic’ solution
IDG Communications, the nearly 60-year-old publisher of brands like PCWorld and TechHive, is rebranding as Foundry.
Resources & Opportunities
With #PitchWars closing, here are some other pitch events
Via @sarahremywrites:
FEB 17 #PBPitch PictureBookPitch
FEB 24 #SFFPit ScienceFictionFantasyPitch
MAR 5 #PitLight PitchLight
MAR 17 #RevPit RevisionPitch
APR 01 #CookiePitch CookiePitch
APR 07 #MoodPitch moodboard pitch open to all genres and age categories
APR 14 #LGBTNPit LGBTNonbinaryPitch
MAY 05 #APIPit AsianPacificIslanderPitch
MAY #PitDark PitchDark
JUN 23 #PitchDis PitchDisabled
AUG #DVpit DiverseVoicesPitch
OCT 05 #KidLitGN KidLitGraphicNovels
@latinxpitch is helping increase latinx representation through its Twitter pitch contest
Anyone who wants twitter feedback on your pitches, tag it with #PitPrac
As always, make sure you do your own research before entering.
[margins.] program proposal
MT @wordisdiversity [margins.] is accepting programming proposals for 2022! The only of its kind in the U.S., the conference for literary artists from marginalized backgrounds will be held 8/5–8/7 at McNichols Civic Center, with virtual options. Deadline: 4/30
New York Artists in Need Can Apply for $1,000 a Month
A $125 million program offering guaranteed income to 2,400 artists across New York State who can demonstrate financial need is now accepting applications. Deadline 3/25.
How To Create A Psychologically Safe Work Environment — lmhq.nyc
HT @jkhoey How do we cultivate a work environment and culture where people feel empowered to ask questions, be themselves, give feedback and make mistakes?
MT @diversebooks Volunteers needed in early March to help judge entries for the 2022 Penguin Random House Creative Writing Awards! Educators, librarians, authors, publishing professionals, and poets interested, please check out the details here. #teamPRH
Inside the Lab: Building for the metaverse with AI — ai.facebook.com
Building For The Metaverse w AI free virtual session 2/23 w Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook AI Research folks, and Benevolent Tech #AI #metaverse
Forbes Digital Asset & Web3 Summit 3/16 free virtual session
NYC School of Data 2022
At @cornell_tech. Early bird till Feb 22. #opendata
Come hear stories from the top women leaders who are breaking barriers in book publishing today:
- Dominique Raccah (Moderator), CEO of Sourcebooks
- Jennifer Goldstein, Head of Books at A Kids Book About
- Lavaille Lavette, President & Publisher at Ebony Magazine Publishing
- Cindy Spiegel, Partner and CEO at Spiegel & Grau
Free for @WMG_NYC members, $15 for non-members. Virtual event 3/1 6–7:30pm ET. Sign up today!!