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Consolidation of subscription agents: a personal viewpoint
Author(s) -
Harrison Colin
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
learned publishing
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.06
H-Index - 34
eISSN - 1741-4857
pISSN - 0953-1513
DOI - 10.1087/09531510050145579
Subject(s) - consolidation (business) , citation , library science , computer science , management , operations research , world wide web , business , engineering , economics , accounting
The current rapid pace of consolidation among publishers and subscription agents may appear alarming to those who look back to more comfortable times. I mean comfortable in terms of the number of subscription agents offering a choice to customers, the number of independent publishers giving realistic discounts to agents, and the number of customers enjoying service from an agent that was not entirely price driven. While there has always been a degree of consolidation in the subscription agent business, there is no doubt that the pace is accelerating. The rate at which the weaker brethren have been disappearing, and at which the successful giants Swets and EBSCO have been growing by the takeover of smaller companies throughout the world, has been quite extraordinary, and the imminent absorption of the once proud and successful Blackwell’s business into Swets must be the biggest consolidation ever. The takeover by RoweCom of Dawson/Faxon and of smaller companies like ISA is part of a different phenomenon, but with similar underlying causes.