What the ruling against the PRH-S&S merger means for the publishing business - The Idea Logical Company

Today's trip into the Catosphere took Panzer to The Idea Logical Company site. There with a little digging in the posts he found one about the Penguin Random House and Simon and Schuster merger failure. Panzer told you about the court case as it unfolded.

It's an interesting read.

Mike Shatzkin gives an in-depth analysis of what he believes will be the outcome of the court decision to stop the Penguin Random House (PRH) merger with Simon and Schuster (S&S). He presents his reasoning for why there will continue to be a big five in the publishing industry.

Panzer says, "Everything he presents makes sense as long as the court decision is upheld on appeal. (If there is an appeal.)"

Note: This is a very long post. Bring a large cup of warm tea and two muffins for today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to PRH-S&S merger ruling

To read the previous post about the court decision tootle over to PRH-S&S written ruling

The Amazon Bookstore Isn't Evil. It's Just Dumb. - New Republic

Today while Panzer was tootling around in the Catosphere, he stopped in at the New Republic site. There our inquisitive kitty boy found information about Amazon's New York bricks and mortar bookstore.

He has an interesting view on this.

In his post Alex Shephard expresses his disdain for Amazon's New York (city) bricks and mortar bookstore. Mr. Shephard points out that because of the 3,000 book inventory the bookstore carries Amazon can't possibly sell enough books to pay the rent for the bookstore space. He also finds the mixture and staging of the books confusing. He believes Amazon is probably opening bricks and mortar bookstores simply because they have too much money and want to spend some of it. Yesterday, Panzer told you about The Idea Logical Company's site founder Mike Shatzkin's views on the same bookstore.

Panzer says, "Ummm ... This little kitty told you yesterday Amazon couldn't make enough money with such a small inventory to pay the rent on the bookstore."

Note: This a h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring two thermos of tea and two dozen muffins and a sleeping bag for a nap halfway through today's reading selection. If you plan to read yesterday's post as well, bring another thermos of lemonade and 2 dozen more muffins and a dozen cookies (biscuits).

To read today's post, tootle over to Amazon bookstore

To read yesterday's post about Amazon's New York bookstore, tootle over to Amazon brick and mortar bookstore

First impressions of an Amazon bookstore - The Idea Logical Company

Panzer took a long trip in the Catosphere today. Our kitty pilot was looking for a little adventure. After traveling hither and yon he found a site called The Idea Logical Company. At the site he discovered a blog called The Shatzkin Files. After digging around for a while, he uncovered a post about what Amazon's Manhattan (New York) bookstore is like inside.

This kitty says it's not worth a visit.

According to site founder Mike Shatzkin, his wife found the Amazon store to be like an airport bookstore because all the book covers face outward. Mr. Shatzkin advises it only takes about 20 minutes to browse the entire store. Mainly this is because the store only contains 3,000 titles. Because of this small number, he points out a problem his wife had finding a book she wanted for a gift. Included in the post is a breakdown of the different types of books available.The post also has descriptions of two visits Mr. Shatzkin and his wife made to the bookstore and the differences in each visit.

Panzer says, "Hmm ... Only 3,000 books ... Doesn't sound like their sales would be enough to pay the rent."

Note: This is a h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring two thermos of tea, three dozen muffins and a sleeping bag for a nap in the middle of today's reading selection.

To read the post tootle over to  Amazon bookstore

Barnes and Noble Faces a Challenge that has Not Been Clearly Spelled Out - The Idea Logical Company

Panzer made a trip to The Idea Logical Company site today. With hardly any digging at all he found a post about Barnes and Noble.

The post by Mike Shatzkin addresses the question of what Barnes and Noble needs to do now to be a viable and healthy bookstore chain. According to Mr. Shatzkin, basically the answer seems to be that smaller is better. He suggests that instead of enlarging the stores to what ousted CEO Ron Boire called "concept stores," the stores should, instead, downsize. With examples from the history of bookstores up to the present, Mr. Shatzkin shows the current evolution is for smaller stores. There are other suggestions to ensure Barnes and Noble's ability to continue to function.

After all that, I need a nap.

Panzer says, "I promise, no more posts about Barnes and Noble for a while."

Note: This is a h-u-m-o-n-g-o-u-s post. Bring two thermoses of tea and two dozen muffins for today's reading selection. You should probably also bring a sleeping bag for a nap halfway through the reading selection, too.

To read the post, tootle over to Barnes and Noble