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According to Webinar Poll, 51 percent View the Google Book Search Settlement as an Opportunity, But Only 16 percent are Prepared to Capitalize

SAN CARLOS, Calif. — March 20, 2009 — MarkLogic Corporation, a leading provider of infrastructure software for information applications, delivered this week an educational webinar entitled “Publishing Industry v. Google: New Opportunities and Strategies from the Landmark Settlement,” which featured esteemed industry consultant Bill Rosenblatt, president of GiantSteps Media Technology Strategies. Professionals from a broad cross-section of the information and media industry participated in an insightful discussion on the recent landmark settlement between Google and book publishers. In addition, attendees learned about practical ways organizations can prepare their infrastructure to exploit this extraordinary business opportunity in online publishing

MarkLogic continues to see tremendous interest in this controversial topic; in fact, the webinar set a company record for registrations. A recent MarkLogic presentation at the O’Reilly Tools of Change for Publishing 2009 conference attracted a standing-room only crowd. Coverage of this session can be found in the Publishers Weekly article “TOC: The Digital Future Is Confusing and Inspirational.”

Research Results

Webinar registrants and attendees were polled on a series of questions around the Google Book Search settlement. The following are highlights from the results:

  • When asked if their company’s content was in the “appropriate format for Google Book Search to ingest/index,” 68 percent of respondents said “no” or “not sure.”
  • As for how the audience views Google Book Search, 51 percent of respondents saw it as an “opportunity” for their business and six percent deemed it a “threat.” 35 percent stated that Google Book Search was “both” and just eight percent replied “neither.”
  • Polled to describe their company’s “readiness to take advantage of the opportunities enabled by the Google Book Search Settlement,” 60 percent replied that they “need to build some new capabilities” and 18 percent said they “need to completely retool their publishing tools and processes.” Only 16 percent stated that they were “fully ready now.”

“Publishers have been grappling for years with the best way to move their valuable content assets to effective and profitable digital models,” said Bill Rosenblatt, president, GiantSteps Media Technology Strategies. “Trends like the Google Book Search settlement and proliferation of technology platforms like XML servers provide publishers with a clear path to tap into this rich market opportunity.”

Google Book Search Settlement Resources

In its ongoing effort to provide continued education on the Google Book Search settlement, MarkLogic has made a number of online resources available:

  • To view an archived recording of the “Publishing Industry v. Google: New Opportunities and Strategies from the Landmark Settlement” webinar please visit here.
  • A complimentary copy of the new whitepaper “Google’s Settlement with the Publishing Industry: Opportunities and Strategies for Publishers” by Bill Rosenblatt can be downloaded here.
  • A bevy of links to helpful source material and commentary on the Google Book Search Settlement can be found on the MarkLogic CEO Blog at the post here. This website has just been named a finalist in the 2009 SIIA CODiE Awards for “Best Corporate Blog.”