Friday News: Not even sure how to title this one
Hearst and Condé Nast Join Forces to Form PubWorx, a Shared Services Firm – So with magazine subscriptions going for alike $5 a pop, Condé Nast and Hearst are going into business together to create magazines on a contract basis for other companies. Because nothing says reinvention of the magazine business than having other people pay you to produce their publications.
PubWorx is a 50-50 joint venture between the two New York-based publishers, and will incorporate staff and back-office functions from both firms. It will provide third-party companies a range of products and services, including procurement, production, full-service and end-to-end circulation management operations.
“PubWorx is an innovative new company that combines the commitment to excellence and publishing expertise of both Condé Nast and Hearst, and offers it to third-party companies for the first time,” said Condé president and ceo Bob Sauerberg. “Having the two parent companies as its first clients sets PubWorx up for success and we are looking forward to the new company developing untapped business opportunities with its unique position in the market.” – WWD
Hong Kong’s missing booksellers and ‘banned’ Xi Jinping book – I sure hope someone writes a book about this case one day. KIDDING! Anyway, a writer based in the US has come forward claiming that he co-authored the book that some have alleged is behind the disappearance of five Hong Kong publishers/booksellers. The writer, using the pseudonym Xi Nuo, has apparently published the book online in a direct challenge to the Chinese government:
Xi Nuo says that his book Xi Jinping and His Lovers was finished in 2014, but Mr Gui decided against publishing it after a visit from a Chinese government agent.
The book also has another author, a man believed to have penned much of the work and who is not being named for safety reasons.
Xi Nuo says he has now decided to publish the book to challenge the Chinese authorities.
“I decided to publish this book. I want to tell the Chinese authorities and Xi Jinping, the president of China, that you are wrong. Completely wrong. You better release the five guys. Let them go back home, ” Xi Nuo said. – BBC News
Netflix Studied How the Streaming Service Affects Your Love Life and the Results Are Fascinating – You can’t make this stuff up! Netflix has, apparently with a straight face, “studied” a possible link between relationships and Netflix habits. Which just goes to show you how much money is perceived to be related to romance.
27 percent of Netflix users say show-compatibility is important, which means a person’s Parks and Rec preference might be a deal breaker. And 13 percent said they would ask someone out based solely on if the person likes the same show as they do.
Is someone more attractive based on the shows they watch? 25 percent of people said yes! So if you’re looking to fall in love, maybe take a look at your Netflix viewing history and think about your choices. Although if someone doesn’t accept your Gilmore Girls binging, then they don’t deserve you at your best. – E! Online
The book most people have lied about reading? It’s not what you think. – So here’s a shocker (not really): people actually lie about the books they have read. What is surprising, though, is that Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland is at the very top of the list compiled by the BBC. Pride and Prejudice is also on the list of the top-20 lied-about books.
The survey examined the reading habits of 2,000 Britons and found one in four people lied about reading a classic when a TV adaptation of it was shown.
“The most popular ruse [to seem more intellectual is] pretending to have read classic novels, with 42 per cent of people relying on film and TV adaptations, or summaries found online, to feign knowledge of the novels,” the UK’s Telegraph reports.
Interestingly, the survey also found that film and television adaptations actually encourage viewers to pick up the original text, with 44 percent saying they would be tempted to pick up a book if it had been adapted for film or TV.- Christian Science Monitor
Ah, I can foresee a big market in the future for men who watch wedding dress shows and women who watch car shows and lots of single men and women who can’t find anyone compatible.
On an unrelated note, this blog post from author autumn Calquist has been rattling around inside my head.
http://www.autumnkalquist.com/20k/
Maybe its just me, but I found the tone of the article troubling.