2006 conference of the Association of American University Presses,

["Hamaker, Chuck" <cahamake@email.uncc.edu>]

Chronicle of Higher Education
>From the issue dated June 30, 2006
http://chronicle.com/weekly/v52/i43/43a01002.htm (link for subscribers
only)
HOT TYPE
University-press officials at their annual conference discussed
the popularity of regional titles, the loss of sales to used
textbooks, and the best ways to navigate the digital world.


E-reserves, original digital scholarship, and how the Net 
Generation learns were some of the most-talked-about topics at 
the 2006 conference of the Association of American University 
Presses, in New Orleans from June 15 to 18.

snip

Several press directors and editors reported that they have been
cultivating regional titles, which have proved to be strong sellers.

.... "Many of us have been experiencing very high returns this spring,"
said Lynne Withey, director of the University of California Press and
president of the association, referring to unsold books sent back by
booksellers.

snip

Peter J. Givler, the association's executive director, said in an 
interview that one particular challenge at the moment is the use 
of e-reserves, in which professors make required reading material 
for their courses available online. Although "the pedagogical 
capability of that sort of material is a significant advance," 
Mr. Givler said, "the problem is there's a tendency among some of 
the faculty to use e-reserves as de facto course packs. ... What 
I'm hearing from my members is that they're seeing a real decline 
in permission rights."

Panelists at a session on "Copyright Interests: What Does the 
Future Hold?" also expressed serious concern over e-reserves, 
which represent "a significant problem" for university presses, 
according to Linda Steinman, an intellectual-property lawyer and 
partner in the New York office of the law firm of Davis Wright 
Tremaine LLP. "There is rampant distribution of digital materials 
where people do need permission and aren't paying for

snip

The official line continued to be pragmatic optimism. "I feel 
we're not in a state of crisis," Penelope Kaiserlian, director of 
the University of Virginia Press, said in an interview. Ms. 
Kaiserlian, who takes over from Ms. Withey as AAUP president this 
year, made it clear that the idea of transformative publishing 
applied not just to technology but to people: "We really are 
having to transform ourselves. ... We're in such a world of 
change, we need constant re-education."

Hence, she and Ms. Withey said, the association has drafted a 
strategic plan that calls for the development of more 
business-service programs for members as well as opening up 
membership to some presses that might not have qualified before.

snip

Two panels on "Digital Publishing in the University Press 
Mission" dealt with some specific steps academic publishers might 
take into the electronic age. On the first of those panels, Peter 
J. Potter, editor in chief of Cornell University Press, talked up 
the importance of the relationship between university presses and 
libraries, a theme that recurred throughout the weekend. Mr. 
Potter advised finding small projects on which to collaborate at 
first and "going in with respect for each other. I've sensed at 
some institutions that isn't the case."

snip

Perhaps the most practical adaptive strategy came from Mr. 
Holzman of Temple University Press. During a conversation, he 
pointed out that "the risks for us of spending a lot of money on 
something and having it go wrong are really significant." He 
intends to stay abreast of state-of-the-art digital projects like 
Rotunda's or Oxford Scholarship Online's to see what works before 
venturing too far into the digital world.


Chuck Hamaker
Associate University Librarian Collections and Technical Services
Atkins Library
University of North Carolina Charlotte
Charlotte, NC 28223