Publishing News
General News
July 1-15, 2005 Edition GENERAL NEWS eRepublic Magazine
to Launch Texas
Technology Publication
AUSTIN, TX/06/20/05eRepublic’s Government Technology magazine will launch Texas Technology, a regional news and best practices publication for Texas state and local government and education officials, later this year. Texas Technology will be published quarterly in collaboration with the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR).
” Texas Technology‘s mission is to foster and share best practices and innovative solutions in the public sector IT arena throughout all levels of government in Texas. Additionally, the magazine will showcase the state’s new product and service contracting vehicles available to all public sector entities” said Government Technology Associate Publisher Jon Fyffe.
“We are excited about the potential of Texas Technology and our partnership with e.Republic. Throughout Texas we’re building statewide collaboration and learning from each other. Texas Technology will be an effective way to highlight public sector best practices statewide,” said Texas Chief Technology Officer, Larry Olson, executive director of DIR.
College Libraries, Bowker
Team Up To Develop
Electronic Resources
NEW PROVIDENCE, NJ/06/21/05The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) has selected R.R. Bowker as its exclusive publishing partner for “Resources for College Libraries” (RCL), a new database of core titles for academic libraries that will be the successor to the classic reference work, “Books for College Libraries” (BCL), 3rd Edition, published in 1988.
RCL, which is expected to debut as both a Web-based subscription product and a multi-volume print offering in the fall of 2006, will feature a comprehensive core list of more than 50,000 books and electronic resources spanning all undergraduate liberal arts and sciences subject areas. Like its predecessor, RCL will be the product of a massive editorial effort involving a full-time Project Editor, Marcus Elmore, who is overseeing the work of more than 50 subject editors, several hundred bibliographers and 50+ referees.
“ACRL is pleased to partner with Bowker to develop a comprehensive, next-generation resource for library collection management decisions,” said Mary Ellen Davis, executive director of ACRL. “Bowker’s highly regarded bibliographic databases, `Books In Print'(R) and `Global Books In Print'(R), will be of great assistance to our subject editors and bibliographers during the compilation of RCL.”
“College librarians have been eagerly awaiting an updated version of `Books for College Libraries’, so we are delighted to be working with Bowker on this important project,” said Irv Rockwood, editor and publisher of ACRL’s Choice magazine, which has overall responsibility for editorial development. “Like BCL, which was also developed at Choice, `Resources for College Libraries’ will set the standard for academic library collection assessment. However, it will also take advantage of today’s online technology to offer features and capabilities not possible in a print format. Equally important, `Resources for College Libraries’ will be regularly updated and revised, ensuring that it remains current.”
“This partnership combines the strength of the ACRL’s editorial expertise and understanding of libraries’ needs with Bowker’s industry-leading bibliographic database and global product development experience,” said Michael Cairns, president of New Providence-based R.R. Bowker. “We’re very excited about this collaboration and expect that `Resources for College Libraries’ will become an instant `must-have’ database for college and research librarians.”
According to Angela D’Agostino, vice president of business development for R.R. Bowker, Bowker will also be making available its new book analysis product, Bowker’s Book Analysis System, to college librarians who wish to bundle an analytic tool with the core ACRL database offering.
“Bowker’s Book Analysis System enables library professionals to perform quick core and gap analyses of their book collections by subject, eliminating the tedious and manual comparisons that plague most collection development,” said D’Agostino. “Our new system offers gap analysis and other reporting tools for college library professionals, nicely complementing the mission-critical content at the heart of the new `Resources for College Libraries’ product.”
Bowker’s Book Analysis System will be unveiled to library professionals at the upcoming American Library Association (ALA) 2005 Annual Conference at McCormick Place Convention Center in Chicago. For more information about Bowker’s agreement with ACRL to create “Resources for College Libraries,” or to view a demonstration of the new system, please visit Booth 2008 during the ALA Annual Conference on June 25-28, 2005.
About R.R. Bowker
Founded in 1872, R.R. Bowker is North America’s leading provider of bibliographic information, and is also the official ISBN agency for the United States and Puerto Rico. Summary statistics for U.S. Book Production is available on BookWire, Bowker’s portal to the book trade, at www.BookWire.com. The company’s flagship product, “Books In Print”(R), is available on the Internet at www.BooksInPrint.com, on CD-ROM and in hardbound print format. For more information, please visit www.Bowker.com or call 1-888-BOWKER2 (1-888-269-5372).
About the Association of College & Research Libraries
ACRL, a division of the American Library Association, represents 13,000 academic and research librarians and interested individuals. ACRL is the only individual membership organization in North America that develops programs, products and services to meet the unique needs of academic and research librarians. Its initiatives enable the higher education community to understand the role that academic and research libraries play in the teaching, learning and research environments.
About Choice
Founded in 1964, Choice is a publishing unit of ACRL. The leading academic review journal, Choice is best known for its print and electronic publications, Choice Magazine and ChoiceReviews.online. Each year Choice publishes more than 6,500 concise, critical, expert reviews of new scholarly books and electronic sources in fields that extend across the entire college curriculum.
Gannet Execs Predict
Soft Advertising Sales
For Second Half
NEW YORK, NY/06/22/05Executives of Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) said at the Mid-Year Media Review today they continue to see mixed signals in the economy, although they expect moderate economic growth in the second half of 2005.
Douglas H. McCorkindale, chairman, president and CEO of Gannett, said overall, the companys results are a mixed bag but our publishing revenue growth has been solid and at the top end of the industry despite having some of the toughest comparisons. He noted there is softness in advertising sales in some key areas.
McCorkindale said: Our challenge continues to be determining what consumers want and delivering it to them .We will continue to expand our reach in the communities we serve and deliver information, including advertising, to our constituencies how and when they want it.
Gary Watson, president of the Newspaper Division, said the company is seeing measurable success from its efforts online and with non-daily publications. Clearly, these categories continue to be critical factors in our revenue growth but they also strengthen our position in the marketplace by expanding the footprint and reach of the newspaper brand.
Watson said the Division is developing a way to measure the aggregated reach of the newspapers various products in a market. A test in two markets, Phoenix and Brevard County, FL, shows the newspaper brand reaches more than three out of every four adults in the market each week.
Craig Dubow, president and CEO of Gannett Broadcasting, said: We expect a strong demographic performance for our key news time periods in the May sweep. Also, he said new business initiatives are delivering good results. However, he noted, the two top categories, auto and retail, remain challenged in the local markets.
Dubow will become president and CEO of Gannett on July 15.
Craig Moon, president and publisher of USA TODAY, said revenues at USA TODAY are projected to grow in the mid-single digits for the second half of the year, although results have been choppy to date. In the spring 2005 MRI book the USA TODAY brand, both print and online, reached 6.2 million unduplicated readers, an increase of 55% in 10 years. USA TODAY now has the highest market share of its competitive set, he said.
Gracia Martore, senior vice president and chief financial officer, updated several operating assumptions including newsprint, debt and the share repurchase program. She said the company anticipates it will achieve percentage growth in earnings per share for the second quarter of 2005 consistent with the percentage growth in earnings per share in the first quarter of 2005.
Speeches by the Gannett executives will be available by Webcast until July 22. The Webcast archive is accessible through www.midyearmediareview.com or through www.gannett.com.
Gannett Co., Inc. is a leading international news and information company that publishes 101 daily newspapers in the USA, including USA TODAY, the nation’s largest-selling daily newspaper. The company also owns more than 800 non-daily publications in the USA and USA WEEKEND, a weekly newspaper magazine. Gannett subsidiary Newsquest is the United Kingdoms second largest regional newspaper company. Newsquest publishes more than 300 titles, including 17 daily newspapers, and a network of prize-winning Web sites. Gannett also operates 21 television stations in the United States and is an Internet leader with sites sponsored by its TV stations and newspapers including USATODAY.com, one of the most popular news sites on the Web.
Pearson To Acquire
AGS in Move to Strengthen
School Publishing Unit
LONDON/06/23/05Pearson, the international media and education company, today announced the acquisition of AGS Publishing from WRC Media for $270 million in cash. The acquisition will strengthen Pearsons education business in two fast-growing segments of the U.S. School market: testing and publishing for students with special educational needs.
AGS, based in Shoreview, Minnesota, publishes assessments and curriculum materials for U.S. school psychologists, teachers and students. It has a particular focus on supporting students who are at-risk or performing below grade level, including those whose first language is not English. These areas are attracting new attention and funding with the US federal requirement under No Child Left Behind (NCLB) that all students achieve Adequate Yearly Progress towards mandated state standards in reading, math and science.
According to the US Department of Education, approximately three million students (ages 6-21) are being served in the learning-disabled category of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The Special Education Expenditure Project calculated that nationwide, expenditures for educating students with disabilities made up almost 22 percent of the total expenditures for elementary and secondary educational services. The number of English language learners aged 5-17 in the US grew from 2.4 million in 1990 to 3.5 million in 2000, according to the US Census. AGS has grown rapidly in recent years, with sales increasing by more than 20% in both 2004 and the year to date. AGSs operating profit was $23m in 2004 before corporate overheads and is expected to increase significantly as the business becomes part of Pearson. Pearson expects the acquisition to enhance adjusted earnings per share from 2006, its first full year, including integration costs, and to be earnings neutral in 2005. Pearson also expects the acquisition to meet its cost of capital in 2006 and to enhance return on invested capital from 2007*. AGSs net asset value was $26m at 31 December 2004.
Steve Dowling, President of Pearsons School companies, said: “The central goal of federal education policy is for all students to demonstrate progress towards state standards in key subjects. That requires a focus on students with special educational needs. AGS reaches these audiences with individually and group administered assessments and fills out our curriculum offering from middle school to high school for low achieving students. This acquisition extends our position in a fast-growing market segment and adds to the intellectual property, growth and profitability of our school business.”
In school testing, AGS publishes a range of copyrighted assessments, administered by school psychologists or special education professionals with individual students, to assess areas including cognitive ability, educational achievement, speech/language and personal and social development. AGS also publishes a series of formative assessments, administered in the classroom, to track student performance in reading and math towards Adequate Yearly Progress under No Child Left Behind. The AGS assessment products enable teachers to diagnose special needs, assess where students are struggling and prescribe remedial instruction or intervention. AGSs assessment products add breadth and strong branded assessments in the area of special educational needs to Pearsons Assessments & Testing business, a leader in psychological and educational assessments. Pearson has particular strength and leadership in NCLB-required high stakes testing including test development, scoring, processing and reporting.
In school publishing, AGSs curriculum-based instructional materials complement Globe Fearon, an imprint of the Pearson Learning Group. The AGS products include textbooks and workbooks in core curriculum areas, test preparation and independent life skills. The textbooks are geared to a low reading level but with content and design appropriate for middle and high school students.These materials support the individual learning needs of students who are at-risk and require educationally appropriate materials.
The acquisition, which is subject to regulatory approval, is expected to be completed in the third quarter. AGS will become part of the Pearson School Companies with its president, Kevin Brueggeman, joining the Pearson team and reporting to Steve Dowling.
AGSs assessment and curriculum staff and product lines will remain in the Minneapolis area.
