The UK's Booker Prize Announces California's Crankstart as Its New Anchor Sponsor - Publishing Perspectives

Times are changing.

Today as Panzer was enjoying a leisurely trip around the Catosphere, he decided to stop in at the Publishing Perspectives site. There he found a post about the Booker Prize.

According to Publishing Perspectives Editor-in-Chief Porter Anderson, the Man Prize has found a new anchor sponsor. The California-based Crankstart has stepped in as sponsor. Panzer told you in January about the Man Group withdrawing as a sponsor of the Man Booker Prize. Crankstart will not put their name on the prize as the Man Group did. Anticipating a possible little brouhaha about an American (USA) anchor sponsor, the Booker Prize Foundation issued several statements about Crankstart Foundation's charitable contributions to various colleges, universities and programs. Links to other posts for information about the Booker Prize are included in the post.

Panzer says, "This little kitty was wondering who would step in to replace the Man Group and it didn't take long before Crankstart did."

Note: This is a h-u-g-e post. Bring a gallon of cocoa and two dozen chocolate chip cookies (biscuits) for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Booker Prize

To read the post about the Man Booker Prize split tootle over to Man Booker Prize

Amazon abandons plans to occupy huge downtown Seattle office building - The Seattle Times

Panzer stopped in at The Seattle Times newspaper today. With no digging at all our traveling kitty found a post about Amazon.

45,000 people? But not 1 cat.

According to Benjamin Romano and Mike Rosenberg, Amazon has cancelled plans to occupy a portion of a Seattle, Washington, office building the company had already signed a lease for. Amazon will instead look for another business(es) to sublease the 720,000 sq. ft. office space. While no specific reason was given, the company did say they are constantly re-evaluating decisions. The company employs 45,000 persons in Seattle and has another 9,000 job openings there as well. The post includes information about the city of Seattle's office space rental market too.

Panzer says, "45,000 jobs in Seattle? MeWOW!"

Note: This is a l-o-n-g, h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring two gallons of tea and three dozen muffins for today's reading peop. You'll also want to bring a sleeping bag for a nap in the middle.

To read the post tootle over o Amazon

Boyue Likebook Muses 7.8" Android eReader Released - The Digital Reader

Panzer made a quick trip to The Digital Reader site today. With a little digging in the posts our inquisitive kitty found one about the Boyue Likebook Muses ereader.

According to The Digital Reader site owner Nate Hoffelder, the Boyue Likebook Muses Android ereader is now available. It features a 7.8" e-ink touch screen, a quad-core processor and adjustable front-light, plus other features. It's available at Amazon for $329.00 (USD) and at the eReader Store for €251.98. There are links included in the post to both stores so you can read all the specifications and features.

Just helping you out.

Panzer says,"Hmmm ... In the Amazon Questions section it says the Likebook Muses doesn't work with Google Play, but will after mid-March. The section also says the ereader has a 'usb micro connector design'. Just goes to show, always read the Questions section on Amazon before you buy."

Note: This is a short post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Boyue Likebook Muses

Ingram Expands U.K. Footprint - Publishers Weekly

Panzer was tootling around in the Catophere when he heard clapping and cheering outside. Following all the noise took our brave kitty boy to the Publishers Weekly site. With no digging at all he found a post about Ingram Content Group.

Global is pretty big.

According to Jim Milliot, Ingram Content Group announced the acquisition of a new 96,000 sq. ft. site in the U.K. Some of Ingram Content Group's services are being moved to the new location in Milton Keynes, U.K. later in 2019. These services will include physical and digital global book distribution services and print-on-demand (POD) services. There are links to the services being moved included in the post.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... It makes sense to have those services in the same place. The company can easily track the books' global distribution that way."

Note: This is a short post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links in the post, bring a muffin too.

To read the post tootle over to Ingram

A New Panzerism

Panzer on unintended consequences:

It's a thin line between cute and chaos.

Cute is ...

when the kitty swats at the reflection of a fly in the mirror.

Chaos is ...

It's the fly's fault. He made me do it. "

when the kitty chases the fly ...

and ...

dives head first into the mirror ...

and ... the whole thing comes crashing down.



* From Cat Wisdom for humans

Interview: Jessica Sanger on Weighing the EU's Copyright Directive After Trilogue - Publishing Perspective

Today Panzer made a trip to the Publishing Perspectives site. There with no digging at all our traveling kitty pilot found a post about the European copyright directive.

According to Porter Anderson, the Council of the European Union voted on February 20 and approved the current version of the copyright directive. The directive will now move on to the European Parliament which will vote on the matter on February 26. Some of the major rules covered by the directive are explained in the post. There are also links to more information included in the first section. The second section of the post is an interview with Jessica Sanger in which she explains various portions of the directive.

Let's see what happens after Feb. 26.

Panzer says, "This little kitty is still confused about if he can have links to European posts after (if) the directive is passed."

Note: This is a long h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring a gallon of cocoa and a dozen muffins for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links in the post, bring a half gallon of tea and three more muffins.

To read the post tootle over to EU's copyright directive

HMH Trade Forms Audiobook Unit - Publishers Weekly

Today's trip into the Catosphere took Panzer to the Publishers Weekly site. There he discovered a post about HMH's new audiobook unit.

I guess I better look into audio books.

According to Jim Milliot, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH) plans to launch an audiobook unit this fall. The new division will be called HMH Audio. Plans are for 75 audio books yearly.

Panzer says, "Everybody is jumping into the audio book marketplace."

Note: This is a short-short-medium (that's not a typo; it really is a short-short-medium) post. Bring a cup of tea and half a muffin for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to HMH audiobook unit

2019 eBook Distribution Round-up ... - DAVIDWOGAHN.COM

Panzer was tootling around in the Catopshere when he decided to stop in at the DAVIDWOGAHN.COM site. With a little digging around there, our inquisitive kitty boy found a post about aggregators and ebook distributions.

I couldn't have found all this on my own.

The post by site owner David Wogahn compares ebook aggregators. The post contains information to help indie authors and publishers determine their choice between using an aggregator for ebook distribution or distributing to each ebook retailer themselves. There's a comparison chart for the eleven current aggregators listed alphabetically. Included in the chart are the usual companies like Smashwords and Draft2Digital, but also companies like PublishGreen and XinXii as well as seven others. The comparisons cover costs, who the aggregator distributes to, their payment method, and their ISBN requirements (and costs for ISBNs, if any). Clicking the Plus button for each aggregator on the chart shows more individual information.

Panzer says, "Every indie author and publisher should check out this post and the comparison chart."

Note: This is a h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring a gallon of tea and a dozen muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to ebook distribution

A New Panzerism

Panzer on the fallacy of old sayings:

Ever heard that old saying, "Curiosity killed the cat?"

It's all about presentation.

No!

Cats reject the silly notion.

We subscribe to, "Curiosity led the cat to enlightenment."

Publisher, Author Groups Protest Library Book Scanning Program - Publishers Weekly

Today as Panzer was cleaning out the Panzermobile, he found something wadded up under the paw controls. Flattening it out, our fastidious kitty discovered it was a post from the Publishers Weekly site about book scanning. Panzer has been telling you about these ongoing protests for several weeks.

These human's don't care they're stealing?

According to Andrew Albanese, the National Writers Union (NWU) has joined the protest against controlled digital lending (CDL). The NWU joins 36 other national and international organizations against the CDL. The CDL allows the scanning of books and lending of the digital copies to readers. Since this is done without the authors and/or the publishers permission and without payment, the protesting organizations say it constitutes copyright infringement. The most visible of the "lenders" is the Internet Archive's Open Library. The post contains numerous links to several posts on other sites.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... So 37 national and international organizations are against it now. Are any of them ready to file a lawsuit yet?"

Note: This is a huge post. Bring a thermos of tea and half a dozen muffins for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow the links in the post, bring a gallon of tea, a gallon of cocoa and two dozen muffins. You also might want to bring a sleeping bag for a nap in the middle too.

To read the post tootle over to book scanning

To read Panzer's previous post which contains links to all his posts about the CDL (scroll up to the top to read the post), tootle over to  CDL

Amazon Pulls Out Of Planned New York City Headquarters - The New York Times

Panzer was shaken from his after lunch nap by shouting coming from the Catosphere. Putting on earmuffs to protect his sensitive kitty hearing, our brave kitty boy hopped into the Panzermobile. Following the cacophony took him to The New York Times site. There he found a post about Amazon's HQ2.

The post by J. David Goodman stated that today Amazon announced the cancellation of HQ2 in New York City. The company cancelled their plans after protests against the opening of HQ2 there. The protests were led by state and local politicians and some city residents. The post contains statements by the New York governor, the New York City mayor and others. It also includes the text of Amazon's announcement of the cancellation in which the company explains its decision. The announcement also states the company won't re-open the search for a location for HQ2.

I will never understand humans.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... Okay, the state of New York hates Amazon and the 25,000 jobs the company was bringing there."

Note: This is a gigantic humongous post. Bring a gallon of tea and three dozen muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Amazon HQ2

Birthplace of Amazon Up For Sale For $1.5 Million - The Digital Reader

Today as Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere he decided to stop in at The Digital Reader site. With a little digging he found a post about Amazon's birthplace.

According to The Digital Reader site owner Nate Hoffelder, the home Amazon founder Jeff Bezos lived in while he was starting the company is for sale. The Amazon founder never owned the home. He did, however, rent it for a short time and used the garage to start the company. This could technically make the garage the first Amazon headquarters. The post quotes from a newspaper article (post) about the home and its history. There's also a link included in the post to the newspaper to read more of the story.

I have some old cat toys you can buy.

Panzer says, "This little kitty found it interesting humans care about this kind of stuff. Is anybody interested in buying the house where I was born? "

Note: This is a short-medium post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading selection. If you follow the link included in the post, bring another cup of tea and a muffin.

To read the post tootle over to Amazon

US Publishers Slam 'CDL' as 'Systematic Ingringement' as UK Authors Write to Foundations - Publishing Perspectives

Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere when the Panzermobile was shaken and buffeted by the roar of crying and screaming. Following all the ruckus took our brave kitty to the Publishing Perspectives site. With a little digging he discovered all the noise was caused by a post about the Association of American Publishers (AAP) and the Internet Archive's 'Open Library'. Panzer has been posting about the Internet Archive's copyright infringement practices for weeks now.

According to the post by Porter Anderson, the Association of American Publishers has joined the various writers' organizations and individual authors in the condemnation of the Internet Archive's 'Open Library's' continued copyright infringement practices. In addition, the UK's Society of Authors is encouraging it's members to write letters to the foundations supplying funds to the Internet Archive and complain about the illegal practice. The post lists the Association of American Publishers, the UK's Society of Authors, the US's Authors Guild, Writers Union of Canada, and the Australian Society of Authors as groups protesting the Internet Archive's copyright infringement practice. The post includes links to the different organizations' sites for more information about their protest efforts.

Why do humans think it's okay to steal?

Panzer says, "If enough groups and authors protest against this copyright infringement practice, maybe we can all stop the Internet Archive."

Note: This is a humongous giant post. Bring a gallon of tea and one and a half dozen muffins for today's reading selection. If you plan to follow all of the links included in the post, also bring a gallon of cocoa and another dozen muffins and a sleeping bag for a nap too.

To read the post tootle over to Association of American Publishers

To read Panzer's post about the Association of Publishers Press Release (go to the top of the page when you get there) tootle over to AAP Press Release

To read Panzer's post about the Writers' Union of Canada (go to the top of the page when you get there) tootle over to Writers Union of Canada

To read Panzer's post about the Authors Guild and the Society of Authors (go to the top of the page when you get there) tootle over to Authors Guild and Society of Authors

A New Panzerism

Panzer on cat happiness:

I love What His Name's new couch.

It's soft.

It's comfortable.

It's pretty.

But ...

You know ... Couches are really sneaky.

What's His Name needs to stop yelling at me ...

I'm not clawing the couch ..

It's self-defense ...

It attacked me first.

Indigo's Q3 Earnings Hit by Postal Strike - Publishers Weekly

Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere when he heard crying and gnashing of teeth. Following all the noise took our brave kitty boy to the Publishers Weekly site. There our brave kitty boy found a post about Indigo Books and Music.

According to the post by Ed Nawotka, the Canada Post strike hit Indigo Books and Music's third quarter hard. The strike impacted the company's deliveries and helped push revenue down 1.7 percent. Increased employee wages and store improvements also contributed to the revenue decline. On a brighter note CEO Heather Reisman said the company opened their first U.S. store and it was well received.

Inquiring kitties want to know.

Panzer says, "This little kitty is wondering when the second U.S. store will open."

Note: This is a short post. Bring a cup of tea for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Indigo

Statement on Flawed Theory of "Controlled Digital Lending" - AAP Newsroom

Today, Panzer found a statement issued by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) about Controlled Digital Lending (CDL).

They're stealing the food from my dish.

The release by the Association of American Publishers (AAP) addresses the issue of the Internet Archive's "Open Library" and Controlled Digital Lending (CDL). The AAP has joined the Writers' Union of Canada, the Authors Guild and the Society of Authors in protesting the Internet Archive's "Open Library" copying and dispensing authors' and publishers' work on the internet without the copyright holders' permission. The Internet Archive does this without compensation to the affected authors and publishers.

Panzer says, "There has to be a way to stop the Internet Archive and their copyright infringement."

Note: This is a h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring a thermos of tea and a dozen muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Association of American Publishers

To read the post about the Writers' Union of Canada tootle over to Writers' Union of Canada

To read the post about the Authors Guild and the Society of Authors tootle over to Authors Guild and Society of Authors

Ultraviolet to close down ... but it need not take your movies with it - TeleRead

Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere when he decided it was time to make a quick visit to the TeleRead site. With a little digging around in the posts our inquisitive kitty found one about Ultraviolet.

No time to waste. I have to do it now.

According to Chris Meadows, the Ultraviolet site is shutting down. Ultraviolet is the site where if you bought a movie on a DVD/disc you also got the digital copy . Since the site is shutting down, you can save your digital movies from going to the movie cemetery by linking your account to one of five other services/sites. The five services/sites and other options are all listed in the post.

Panzer says, "Vudu is one of the sites listed and Mom has an account there, so I better get those accounts linked."

Note: This is a h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring a thermos of tea and a dozen muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to Ultraviolet

A New Panzerism

Panzer on the proper use of time:

What's His Name is whining about me to Mom again.

He was shoveling snow from the driveway today ...

When somebody yelled, "Freeze!"

It wasn't my fault they made him lay on the snow on the ground ...

with his arms stretched out.

He kept saying, "I didn't do anything, Officer!"

I just called 911 ...

Dinner will be on time from now on.

because ...

It was an emergency ...

My dinner was late.

I didn't know police don't speak cat.