 February 1996, Vol. 7, No. 2
Supply side
Tales of how tough it is to be a supplier to the publishing industry
Whilst engaged in an entrepreneurial activity outside of the publishing industry (we do have interests beyond this skein), I was taken to task by a potential customer because the endeavor was based on the concept of making -- ugh, she said -- a profit.
Though there are lots of people in this world who think making a profit is irksome -- they seem otherwise to have the same middle-class values as the rest of us -- this view appears to have taken root in the publishing industry and will not wither.
I'm reminded of a story a former newspaper editor told me a few months back. It seemed this editor had recently arrived at a small paper in the Southwest and was in the process of making extensive changes.
In fact, the editor had taken a particularly skilled feature writer and given him carte blanche: the journalist was allowed a great deal of latitude in taking time to report stories and write them. The editor was quite satisfied with the results.
As part of restructuring the paper, though, the editor started holding meetings with the staff. He wanted to explain why things were being done and exactly what certain activities cost.
The feature reporter apparently missed a few of these meetings. Months after they'd been instituted, the reporter finally attended one of the meetings. As the editor was explaining that some new endeavor or other would have to be curtailed -- so that the paper could continue to post a profit -- the reporter recoiled.
"We make a profit!?!" he exclaimed. "I can't work for someone making a profit." The reporter stormed out of the office, never to be heard from again.
In all my years in the newspaper and magazine worlds, I don't think I've heard that line before. But I've certainly heard its tone, especially when the point of discussion was the suppliers to our business.
The publishing industry seems to want to paraphrase the classic "Dilbert" cartoon: Give us all the features we want -- yesterday -- and don't make us pay anything for them.
The publishing systems supplier business is a tough row to hoe; inside, we take a couple of looks at it.
First up, Correspondent Christopher J. Feola talks with some suppliers about recently developed tools that can speed up development of software products.
The advent of "open systems" hasn't brought exactly everything we in the publishing industry want, but -- especially when looking at databases -- these tool sets, such as Visual Basic and PowerBuilder, give software suppliers an advantage that just wasn't available in the days of proprietary systems.
Our next stop is with a supplier itself: TV Data of Queensbury, N.Y. Pete Wargo, a systems and support analyst there, explains how he brought the Internet to the complex operation that provides television listings to a large number of newspapers and cable systems throughout the world.
Wargo is well qualified to talk about Internet issues, as he has been around the 'Net for a decade and created the basenji.com free UNIX system (http://www.basenji.com), dedicated to dog aficionados.
And there is probably no greater concentration of suppliers than at the annual MacWorld Exposition. Our Man George Powell, who’s attended each of these affairs for the last 12 years, weighs in with his observations on the state of the Mac -- especially in light of the losses suffered by Apple Computer and the rumor mill’s theory that the company must be sold to survive.
Last, we stop off in Melbourne, Fla., headquarters of Harris Publishing Systems Corp. and home to Harris' annual meeting on pagination. This year’s session, dedicated to pagination and new media, brought a number of quality presentations, including one by our old friend Grady Cooper of Alameda Newspaper Group.
I've never been one to begrudge a supplier -- or a publisher -- a profit. The issue is always: How much profit? And that’s a question for the ages.
-- David M. Cole
Also see Hellbox.
Illustration: Joe Shoulak
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