General Information


What products and services does Lightning Source offer?
Lightning Source offers a suite of services that makes doing business in today's high-tech world both easy and profitable for publishers. Lightning Source has two primary lines of business:
An "on demand" printing division which allows a book to be printed to order in a range of formats within 2 business days, whether the order is for one book or one hundred. Short-Run and web direct distribution orders are printed and fulfilled within 5-10 business days. A comprehensive ebook digital fulfillment system provides a full range of services from digital rights management to content delivery in multiple formats.
Is Lightning Source a publisher?
No. Lightning Source is designed to be a resource for publishers, providing printing, distribution and digital fulfillment services. Publishers maintain all rights to their titles and pay author royalties.>

Does Lightning sell directly to consumers?
No. Lightning Source is not a retailer. While the fast, easy solutions we provide ultimately benefit the consumer, Lightning Source's customers are publishers, booksellers and libraries. The services Lightning Source offers are designed to give publishers the tools they need to maintain high standards for customer service in a changing marketplace.

How is Lightning Source different from traditional book printers?
Lightning Source specializes in "on demand" printing needs. Titles are printed one book at a time to meet the exact demands of the market. A range of formats are available including hardcover, trade paperback and ebook. As part of our "on demand" printing capabilities, we also provide short-run and galley/bound proof printing.

How can Lightning Source benefit publishers?
Lightning Source benefits the publisher through both its print-on-demand and ebook services. With Lightning Source's print-on-demand system, the publisher sells more books, reduces its investment in printing and warehousing inventory and all orders are filled quickly and easily. In addition to Lightning Source's "on demand" capabilities, our digital fulfillment services will give you the tools you need to realize the potential of ebook sales while at the same time affording you the flexibility you need to keep pace with the dynamics of the marketplace.

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Digital Library
 

How do you add a print-on-demand title to the Lightning Source digital library?
It's easy. If you are an existing customer, you can do this on our web site by logging into our Publishers Secure Site (login/password entry is on the left side of this screen). If you are a new customer, click on the New Customer link (on the left side of this screen) to provide new customer information and establish an account.

Must my title be in digital format when I submit it?
No. Lightning Source accepts both hard copy and digital file submissions for print-on-demand products. The hard copy is scanned for print-on-demand. Ebook titles are only accepted in digital format. Then the title is stored digitally in the Lightning Source library.

If submitting by digital file, are there format requirements?
Yes. Contact your client services manager for complete specifications or refer to the Book Designers Reference section of the Lightning Source Website.

Who owns the title?
The publisher. Lightning Source is designed to be a resource for publishers, providing printing, distribution and digital fulfillment services for them. Publishers maintain all rights to their titles and pay author royalties.

Who owns the rights to the book?
The publisher retains all rights to the book content. Lightning Source is neither a publisher nor a retailer. We provide quick, reliable digital fulfillment services on behalf of our customers.

What books are candidates for the Lightning Source print-on-demand program?
Depending on your needs, any title can be a candidate. Current titles in the Lightning Source Library include new titles, current backlist, OP (out of print), and OSI (out of stock) titles. Books should not be pornographic or obscene to a degree where they would not be carried by a traditional trade bookstore.

Is our file secure with Lightning Source?
Yes, absolutely! The Lightning Source library and digital fulfillment system are reliable and secure.

Who will determine whether a book will be a print-on-demand title, ebook title or both?
When publishers submit a title, they decide the format(s) in which the book will be offered. Lightning Source's cutting-edge technology allows us to quickly and affordably provide those titles, regardless of the format selected, to fill various orders.

How does a publisher get paid?
For each book sold, either as an "on demand" title or as an ebook, publishers receive payments as well as detailed sales reports monthly. These reports can be sent electronically or as a hard copy - whichever you prefer. For wholesale book orders, LSI pays the publisher the wholesale price of the book, less the cost of printing the book. The cost of printing is based on a unit cost for each book plus a cost per page.

Who is responsible for paying author royalties?
Author royalties are paid by the publisher.

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Print-on-Demand Services

Is Lightning Source an out-of-print service?
With the Lightning Source print-on-demand service, publishers can now bring back out-of-print titles and prevent premature extinction of low-volume sellers. In addition, publishers can test-market or launch a new publication through our services.

What are the capabilities of Lightning Source's "on demand" services?
Lightning Source has the ability to print "on demand" titles within the following specifications:
Lightning Source On Demand Offerings
What materials are used in Lightning Source print-on-demand books?
Lightning Source uses a high quality, acid-free, book-grade of opaque paper stock. All books with trim sizes of 6"x9" or smaller are printed on a 55# natural shade opaque. Larger books are printed on a 50# white. Paperback covers are printed on a bright white 90# cover stock.

Once in the Lightning Source library, who can order a print-on-demand title? How do they do that?
Booksellers can order Lightning Source titles through Ingram, Bertrams, or through their regular source of supply as they would any other title. The publisher can also order copies directly, or use Lightning Source's direct distribution option to fulfill direct sales.

Are Lightning Source print-on-demand titles non-returnable?
Publishers determine the returnability of their titles.

Does an "on demand" title have the same quality as the original?
Very close! Lightning Source titles are virtually identical to offset-printed originals. In fact, you would be hard-pressed to tell the difference. We produce clean graphics, vibrant 4-color covers, and easy-to-read text.

How does making a title available as a print-on-demand title benefit me and my authors?
With Lightning Source's combination of "on demand" and short-run printing, publishers reduce inventory carrying costs and the risk associated with reprinting slow-moving titles or launching new titles. This in turn allows publishers to provide more new titles and keep more books in print. For authors, big or small, Lightning Source affords the opportunity to prolong the active life of their book. As part of our "on demand" capabilities, Lightning Source also provides 4-color cover galleys/bound proofs for promotional use.

How quickly can print-on-demand orders be printed and shipped?
Using revolutionary technology, Lightning Source can print 800 pages in less than a minute!
Print-on-demand wholesale orders are printed and shipped within 2 business days.
Lightning Source direct distribution orders are printed and shipped within 5-10 business days.
Hardcover bind styles are printed and shipped within 10-15 days.

How does Lightning Source's direct distribution program work?
Publishers can opt to use Lightning Source's direct distribution service in addition to distribution through Ingram, Bertrams, or other distributors and wholesalers. This allows your customer the option of ordering directly from you, the publisher. You electronically transmit the shipping instructions to Lightning Source and we respond with industry standard EDI acknowledgments and shipping notifications. Many retailers and libraries currently work directly with publishers. With our direct distribution service, there is no need to ask the retailer or library to change their process.  You save the in-bound freight and Lightning Source's role is completely transparent to the customer.

What are the advantages of the direct distribution program?
With the direct distribution program, publishers maintain a direct relationship with the customer and have an alternative option for fulfilling the sales channel. The direct distribution option can also be used by the publisher to maintain "just in time inventory" in their own warehouse.

What services does Lightning Source provide for the $12.00 per year Digital Catalog Fee?
A Digital Catalog fee of $12.00 per year entitles a publisher to the following services:

Standardized BISAC subject coding with up to 3 subject categories. Detailed title listing in all daily catalogs Lightning Source provides to its US distribution partners* (e.g Ingram, Baker & Taylor, Amazon.com, etc.). Detailed title listing in all daily catalogs Lightning Source provides to its International distribution partners* (e.g Amazon UK, Whitakers/Bookdata, Gardners, etc.). Title summary (annotation) inclusion in our enhanced bibliographic catalog feed. Thumbnail cover image preparation and inclusion in our enhanced bibliographic catalog feed. Storage and backup of both title content and bibliographic data. Price and discount maintenance for publisher price changes.

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ebook Services

What ebook services does Lightning Source offer?
Lightning Source offers a full suite of digital fulfillment services ranging from digital rights management to secure ebook delivery on behalf of retailers. With established alliances with major technology partners such as Adobe Systems Inc., Microsoft, Palm and others, we deliver ebooks in Adobe Acrobat ebook Reader, Microsoft Reader, and Palm eBook formats.

Must my title be in digital format when I submit it?
Yes. For ebook submissions Lightning Source accepts only digital file submissions.

In submitting a digital file, are there format requirements?
Yes. Contact your account manager for complete specifications or refer to the eBook Operations Manuals on the Publishers Secure Site (to access, login to the left).

How do you add an ebook title to the Lightning Source digital library?
It's easy. Contact your Account Manager for full instructions.

How do resellers know which ebooks are available through Lightning Source?
All ebooks in the Lightning Source library are supplied to Lightning Source retailers and distributors directly by LSI.  For specific questions, contact your LSI client service representative.

Can Lightning Source guarantee secure delivery of ebooks?
Lightning Source works hand in hand with our technology partners to provide the most current security technology for your product.  The Lightning Source digital fulfillment system is secure from the encryption of files to secure delivery.

Does the Lightning Source digital fulfillment system include digital rights management?
Yes, Lightning Source supports the digital rights management systems of the platform providers.

Who decides user rules?
The publisher determines all user rules.

Who owns the content?
The publisher owns the content in the file.

Who decides what ebook formats titles are delivered in?
When setting-up an ebook title, the publisher determines in which formats to make titles available.

Are ebook titles returnable?
No.

How does a publisher get paid for ebook sales?
For each ebook sold, publishers will receive payments as well as detailed sales reports monthly that will indicate which titles were sold and what format they were sold in. These sales reports can be sent electronically or as a hard copy - whichever you prefer.

Who sets the cover price for ebooks?
As with all other formats, the publisher sets the cover price for ebooks.

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