Managing Publications in Transition

By John Morse, President & Publisher, Merriam-Webster, Inc.

There are lots of ways to answer the question where do we go in the digital future – speculate on new technologies, new economic models, new user expectations — but I’d like to take a different track. I suggest that what comes next is a change in our mindset in which we remain attentive to the transformative nature of digital technology, but also appreciate that our move to digital platforms is only one of the transformations we need to go through as publishers. In some ways, this will be the coming of age for digital publishing, as we are reach the point where digital strategy is just one among many strategies, with each strategy holding the potential to energize and be energized by the other strategies.

Business Models for the Digital Future

By Nelson Heller, Ph.D., President, EdNET

It’s getting harder to argue that educational publishing won’t be profoundly changed by digital technology. One doesn’t have to look farther than our iPods, low cost PCs, smart phones, GPSs, Internet telephony, and home appliance digital controls to see it coming. It is no longer a question of whether but when. After looking at all the major “fault lines” associated with this tectonic shift in K-12 education, it’s best to focus on the evolution from a largely content-based business model to one blending content and service; discussing this should cast light on what the impact will be on educational publishing and how to navigate the changes.