Top News:
Alexandra Alter / New York Times:
E-book sales fell 10% in first five months of 2015, while print books and bookstores are showing resilience — The Plot Twist: E-Book Sales Slip, and Print Is Far From Dead — Five years ago, the book world was seized by collective panic over the uncertain future of print.
Eriq Gardner / Hollywood Reporter:
DC Comics Is Entitled to Copyright on Batmobile, Appeals Court Rules — The 9th Circuit rules that the automotive character is sufficiently distinctive to be protected as a work of authorship. — DC Comics drove out of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday with a big win that affirms …
Discussion:
Variety, Comicbook.com, Deadline, The Wrap, Plagiarism Today, Reuters, EW.com and Blastr News
Al Jazeera English:
Al Jazeera journalists Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed released from prison following Egyptian pardon — Al Jazeera journalists freed from Egypt prison — Mohamed Fahmy and Baher Mohamed have been released from prison following Eid al-Adha pardon. — Jailed Al Jazeera journalists Mohamed Fahmy …
Discussion:
Fusion, @ajenews and @benjaminnorton
RELATED:
BBC:
Egypt pardons Al Jazeera journalists Fahmy and Mohamed — Egypt's president has pardoned one of the three Al Jazeera TV journalists convicted of broadcasting false news. — Mohamed Fahmy, a Canadian citizen, is included on a list of 100 prisoners given pardons by Abdul Fattah al-Sisi.
Discussion:
Press Gazette, The Atlantic, Reuters, english.ahram.org.eg, Reuters, @ghoshworld, @osamasaeed, @sameralatrush, @ase, Canadian Press, BuzzFeed, Daily News Egypt, International Business Times, Al Jazeera America, Poynter, NPR, ABC, The Independent, CBS News, Fox News, TheAustralian, Associated Press, Mashable, Guardian, Business Insider Australia, Middle East Eye, CityNews, TheCable, BelfastTelegraph.co.uk, Yahoo! News, Coast Reporter, Sky News, Cairo Post, Global News, 9news.com.au, Montreal Gazette, and breaking, Egyptian Streets, CBC News, Arabian Business, Sky News, France 24, CJAD 800, Toronto Star, Reuters, Reuters, Telegraph, PanARMENIAN.Net and @bbcnews_ticker
Parker Higgins / Electronic Frontier Foundation:
Copyright case for Happy Birthday song illustrates problems with US copyright law: long terms, unclear records, high legal costs — Happy Birthday To Everybody: Victory For The Public Domain (With An Asterisk) — It's now (probably) legal to publicly sing the world's most popular song …
RELATED:
Ravi Somaiya / New York Times:
ThinkProgress to Unionize With Writers Guild of America — The news website ThinkProgress said on Wednesday that it would unionize with the Writers Guild of America, East, becoming the latest digital media outlet to organize in recent months seeking better pay and working conditions.
Discussion:
@andbrei, @patrick_speaks and The Huffington Post
Mark Sweney / Guardian:
BuzzFeed to cover more local news as it expands UK editorial team — Fourteen new staff to include regional reporters increasing competition with local newspapers — BuzzFeed will make its first foray into more localised news coverage by beefing up its UK editorial team …
Discussion:
Nieman Lab, Politico, Press Gazette, @jayrosen_nyu and Digiday
Lara O'Reilly / Business Insider:
UBS research note says iOS 9 ad blocking concerns “overblown”, could cost $1B, or .5% of global digital ad spend — iPhone ad blocking apps will ‘only’ cost $1 billion in lost advertising revenues — The impact of the introduction of ad blocking on iPhones and iPads …
Jason Abbruzzese / Mashable:
Symphony Advance Media launches VideoPulse, which uses passive listening to track video consumption; pays users $5-$11 per month — A new app will pay you $11 a month to let it track every video you watch — Would you download an app that is solely designed to track and report everything you watch?
Discussion:
ClickZ, ITBusinessNet.com and AdExchanger
Steven Millward / Tech in Asia:
Inspired by China, Thailand setting up its own Great Firewall — Thailand's unelected junta has moved a major step closer to setting up a China-style Great Firewall that could block and censor websites or apps. A proposal to set up sophisticated and streamlined web censorship …
Discussion:
Telecom Asia, VentureBeat, New York Times, Guardian and The Independent
Josh Gerstein / Politico:
Nine journalists subpoenaed to testify in privacy case by Jill Kelley against US government, linked to ex-CIA Chief David Petraeus — Journalists subpoenaed in Kelley privacy lawsuit against government — Nine journalists have been subpoenaed to give testimony in a Florida's woman's lawsuit alleging …
Discussion:
Associated Press, Washington Post and @freedomofpress
Atavist Insider:
The Atavist Magazine abandons native apps to focus on web, saying apps have poor discovery, slow approval, tech limitations, smaller readership — Goodbye, Native Mobile Apps — When we concocted the ideas that would become Atavist and The Atavist Magazine, in 2010 …