Business Week writes up the publishing behemoth and its efforts to counter that evil demon Google and figure out how to entice people who don’t, um, read books:
Book publishers might be expected to be nostalgic and lament the past, but the tumult they witnessed in the music world sounded the alarm, says [Richard] Sarnoff, whose great-uncle was RCA Chairman David Sarnoff, a pioneer in the development of radio and TV. “The technology was adopted before there was a business model for legitimate sales,” he says. “That created a fertile ground for piracy, and it became ingrained in consumer behavior.” The urgency for a new business model in publishing was clear. Sarnoff figures that within 18 months, reading devices could be as easy to use for books as the Apple iPod is for music. “Screen technology is about to get much better very quickly,” he says.
So naturally, the one thing that pops out at me is the David Sarnoff connection. Who knew? And yet, in a strange way, it makes sense…