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Friday, November 5th, 1999 Media Cynic | Forum | Advertising | Classifieds | Jobs R. R. Donnelley And Microsoft Announce eBook Deal R. R. Donnelley & Sons Co. and Microsoft Corp. have announced that they will work together to provide consumers equipped with Microsoft Reader software with access to a repository of tens of thousands of eBook titles. "Throughout our 135-year history, R. R. Donnelley has always been at the cutting edge of printing, publishing and content-management technology," said William L. Davis, R. R. Donnelley chairman and CEO. "Clearly, the advent of eBooks is one of many new developments for publishing. The combination of our workflow expertise in printing, content conversion and management, coupled with Microsoft software, will prove to be a win-win for the availability, interest and sales of eBooks." Under the terms of the agreement, Donnelley will continue to work closely with its publishing partners to convert print titles into eBooks that conform to the recently announced Open eBook (OEB) specification. Donnelley will store and manage these titles in electronic form and work with online retailers who will offer the eBook titles to consumers. Donnelley will license technology tools from Microsoft, including digital rights management technology, for its initial eBook service offerings. Microsoft Reader is a new PC software application designed to deliver an on-screen computer reading experience. Microsoft Reader is expected to ship next year. $500 Writing Awards Offered by The Well The WELL, an online community, is hosting its second anual Online Writing Awards. The grand prize this year is $500. Other prizes include a year free on The WELL. Submissions can be made in the following categories: Online Journalism, Personal Essay, Online Fiction, Writing Using Hyperlinks. Each submission must have been composed for online readers (not adapted or copied from print or another medium), must be original, must be first distributed on the Internet this year, and cannot exceed 1500 words in length. You must be 18 years or older to enter the contest. All entries must be received by November 19, 1999. More information can be found at: http://www.well.com/contest/. IDG's InfoWorld Promotes Michael Vizard to Editor in Chief IDG's InfoWorld, an IT newsweekly, has announced that Michael Vizard has been promoted to editor in chief from his position as editor. Sandy Reed, former editor in chief of InfoWorld, has been promoted to editorial director of InfoWorld and InfoWorld strategic initiatives. In his position as editor in chief, Vizard will be responsible for day-to-day editorial operations of InfoWorld and InfoWorld.com, heading a team of more than 100 journalists. "For the last five years, Michael has done a fantastic job of building the news organization and improving our online content," said Stephen Moylan, president and CEO of InfoWorld Media Group. "He has been a major force behind our new editorial position of `defining technology for business' and we look forward to his continued success defining the future for InfoWorld and InfoWorld.com." Vizard has 14 years experience covering computer technology, the last five of which have been with InfoWorld. Last month, Vizard was promoted to editor of InfoWorld from vice president of news. As editor, he was responsible for news coverage of InfoWorld, in addition to leading the editorial content of InfoWorld.com and managing strategic editorial partnerships. Vizard was named vice president of news in 1997. He joined InfoWorld in 1995 as news editor, and was promoted to executive news editor later that year. Before joining InfoWorld, Vizard was an editor at PC Week, Computerworld and Digital Review. Sun Newspapers' Parent Company Purchases Berreth Publications Lionheart Newspapers, the parent company of Sun Newspapers, has acquired Berreth Publications, headquartered in Waconia, Minn., from James & Kathryn Berreth. Berreth currently publishes six weekly newspapers with a total weekly circulation of 40,000 in the Waconia area. The newspapers published by Berreth include: Waconia Patriot, Norwood-Young America Times, Carver County News, Gold Miner, The Laker, and The Pioneer. The acquisition of Berreth Publications, to be renamed Sun-Patriot Newspapers, brings Sun's total circulation in the greater Minneapolis/St. Paul market to 375,000, now including 36 weeklies and one daily newspaper. All newspapers will continue to operate independently under the Sun Newspapers umbrella. "We believe in being ruthlessly local," said Frank G. Chilinski, President & Publisher of Sun Newspapers, and President of all of Lionheart's Minnesota publishing operations. "A good community newspaper reflects the community it serves," Chilinski added. "Berreth Publications will continue to be run locally by the quality local staff who know and best understand their communities. This is a fine group of community weeklies and we are proud to have them as part of our group." This is Lionheart's second acquisition in the Twin Cities area since September. In early September, Lionheart purchased Larson Newspapers, headquartered in Osseo, Minn. Associate Publishers Keith Anderson and Karen Miller will continue to run the day-to-day operations of the Sun-Patriot group and will report directly to Chilinski. Idea Cafe Acquires X-startup.com to Reach Gen-X Entrepreneurs Idea Cafe LLC has announced the acquisition of Xstartup.com. Idea Cafe will add Xstartup.com to Idea Cafe as an area to serve Generation X entrepreneurs. Idea Cafe is a website featuring information, interactive tools, forms and resource guides on starting and running a business. Xstartup.com was founded in early 1999 by Alex Carter, a 23-year old web-development entrepreneur in Ames, Iowa. According to Carter, "There is a powerful phenomenon taking place with Generation X right now in the business world. Recent estimates say that nearly a third of the people who launched new businesses last year were under the age of 30. Many young people, like myself, are opting to 'just say no' to career day and are forging their own path. That's why I started startup.com to help peers in business and to show what Gen X'ers accomplish." "Idea Cafe has information covering all aspects of starting, financing and running a small business, plus the CyberSchmooz chat forum -- all of great help to my GenX viewers. And Xstartup.com gives insight on what young entrepreneurs are achieving, which interests Idea Cafe regulars of all ages," said Carter of the acquisition. English-Korean Internet Magazine Debuts koreanday.com -- a division of the-day.com companies -- has launched a website, aimed at businesses and the community. koreanday.com is a bilingual web magazine offering a variety of content ranging from high fashion to useful business tips. "Koreans, who tend to be 'Net savvy, own more than 69,000 businesses in America with annual sales exceeding $7.6 billion, and the average Korean-American household has a reported income 12% higher than the U.S. average," notes Glenn D. Slovenko, CEO, who launched koreanday.com with partner Jai V. Bae, a native of South Korea. "Koreans are extremely homogeneous and ethnocentric, and tend to conduct business through relatives and other members of the Korean Community. They are loyal consumers with appreciable purchasing power." koreanday.com is updated several times each week. The site features links to a bilingual online auction and downloadable music clips, as well as articles such as "Running a Family Business," "I Had Learned to Hate Exercising But Not Anymore," and interviews with Korean youths starting out on their careers in America. Detour Magazine Launches DetourTV.com Detour Magazine and Load Media have launched DetourTV.com. Each month, DetourTV delivers a video edition of the magazine to the PC using software from Load Media. November Detour publishes its Young Hollywood issue. DetourTV leafs through the pages of the November issue and creates a full video format including the cover article featuring a new Bond Girl, Denise Richards. DetourTV producer Allison Oleskey says, "It is amazing that we can actually show a clip of an upcoming movie online which enhances the story that was done on the actor/actress in the magazine. We are also looking forward to taking our fashion to another level by using video to express the creative vision of the photographer." The first episode of DetourTV is broken down into nine segments that originate from the magazine, including Detour's Compass section and the new First Impressions page devoted to cutting-edge young designers. DetourTV will be updated on a monthly basis with content from the magazine. It will also feature videos of Hollywood events, which will be updated on a weekly basis. Call of the Wild Online The World Wildlife Fund has redesigned and updated website to allow visitors to learn more about endangered species like tigers, rhinos, whales, and pandas; the places where they live; threats to their survival; and how WWF is helping to save them. The new site is a complete makeover, with a new look, improved navigation, integrated actions and news, expanded information, and better tools and resources. WWF directs its conservation efforts toward three global goals: protecting endangered spaces, saving endangered species, and addressing global threats. From working to save the giant panda, tiger, and rhino to helping establish and manage parks and reserves worldwide, WWF has been a conservation leader for more than 38 years. AsiaSource.org Launched by Asia Society The Asia Society has announced the launch of AsiaSource.org, a new website that is a gateway to information and news on everything to do with Asia. According to Asia Society President Nick Platt, "AsiaSource leverages the Asia Society's in-house expertise with the best resources available on the Web. The result is an accessible and intuitive site that provides context and perspective for those looking for information on Asia in a digestible form." Around the Web Big Amazon, Little Amazon Settle Lawsuit CNN Civic Journalism Takes Root on the Web OJR Covering the Unfriendly Skies CJR Escape from Carpal Tunnel Utne Reader For Some Journalists, an Intruder from Within Boston Globe Magazine Execs Vow to Battle Proposed Postal Hike Folio Meltdown at the L.A. Times Salon.com NYT Fires Columnist Rosenthal Media Central Report Sees Moderate Growth For Consumer Books PublishersWeekly Ridder: Newspaper Websites Must Grow Editor&Publisher Writer Plans Second Ventura Story Washington Post Click here to return to the homepage of The Write NewsTM Click here to subscribe to our free weekly email newsletter.  www.writenews.com Copyright © 1997-2007 by Writers Write, Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
