Analysis: if Bertelsmann, owner of Penguin Random House, buys US publisher, writers expect smaller deals and less choice for readersUK watchdog investigates Penguin owner’s Simon & Schuster takeoverJokes circulated online when, in 2013, Penguin and Random House merged: would the new mega-publisher, which became the world’s biggest trade publishing group, be known as Random Penguin? Penguin House? Now, as the prosaically named Penguin Random House’s parent company Bertelsmann’s $2.17bn acquisition of Simon & Schuster comes under scrutiny in the UK, the jokes are fewer and further between.Authors have made it abundantly clear that they fear the fallout if the deal goes ahead. When it was first announced last November, the Authors Guild in the US was quick to register its objections. The acquisition, which would bring heavyweight S&S authors including Hillary Clinton, John Irving, Stephen King and Bob Woodward under the PRH umbrella in the US, would “creat[e] a huge imbalance in the US publishing industry”, it warned, calling on the US justice department to step in. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2021-03-22 23:24:23 UTC ]
Backlist is more important than ever for the publishing industry and the opportunity to use backlist titles to drive the sale of frontlist titles is, according to publishers, “one of the true excitements” of the new era of digital publishing. Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-11-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster had a busy few days last week: the two companies announced their quarterly earnings, received words of encouragement from their corporate owners, and made changes in their Canadian operations. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-11-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Bertelmann is to spend "in the mid-hundreds of millions" in US dollars on American e-learning provider Relias Learning, describing it as the company's "biggest purchase in the US since it took over Random House in 1998". The buy, which will have to be approved by antitrust authorities, is... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Simon & Schuster in the US and Amazon have signed a new multiyear deal which is a "return to a version of agency" and is also “economically advantageous for both Simon & Schuster and its authors”. An email from Carolyn Reidy (pictured), president and c.e.o. at Simon & Schuster, said... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon just found a way to put further pressure on Hachette in its ongoing pricing war: strike a deal with another publisher. The online retailer has forged a new agreement with Simon & Schuster that will keep the book giant's digital and physical... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2014-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The new sales agreement supposedly reached on Monday by Amazon and Simon & Schuster, has been confirmed by both parties. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Lynda Bellingham’s fiction publisher Simon & Schuster has paid tribute to her as a “vibrant” woman who leaves “a truly wonderful literary legacy”. The British actress died yesterday (19th October) aged 66, after a battle with colon cancer. She wrote the novel Tell Me Tomorrow for Simon... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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As Hachette continues its stalemate with Amazon over ebook sales terms, Simon & Schuster has reached a new agreement with the e-tailer. Among other things, the new deal will allow S&S to set the prices on its ebooks, marking a return to the agency model. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins has acquired two celebrity biographies by Sean Smith, in a deal with Gordon Wise of Curtis Brown. Smith has previously written unauthorised biographies of celebrities such as Cheryl Fernandez-Versini and Robbie Williams, both published by Simon & Schuster. HarperCollins has... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2014-10-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Simon & Schuster has secured the rights to produce Ready to Read books in North America based on the preschool series 'Doozers,' licensed by the Jim Henson Company. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Xerox invented Laser printing and copying less than 50 years ago and as a result revolutionized the publishing industry. This innovation was so significant during its time that the outcome was that almost every Japanese electronics product manufacturer, the likes of Canon, Konica, Ricoh and... Continue reading at Wired
[ Wired | 2014-10-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Mary Rasenberger, a lawyer and six-year Copyright Office and Library of Congress veteran, will take over as executive director of the Authors Guild on November 3. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Simon & Schuster's fledgling science fiction and fantasy imprint, Saga Press, will publish its ebooks without DRM, the company said Wednesday afternoon. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Simon & Schuster is teaming with Milq, a new social media platform, to launch a Books category on the content curation venture. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The literary body, representing 9,000 authors, is calling on the US government to launch a competition investigation into Amazon, following the long-running dispute between the internet retailer and publisher HachetteAmericas Authors Guild has met with the US department of justice to call for an... Continue reading at The Guardian
[ The Guardian | 2014-10-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Howard Books, the Christian imprint of Simon & Schuster, will publish two new books by William Paul Young, author of the bestseller 'The Shack.' Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-10-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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In another step in the integration of Penguin and Random House, the company has completed the buyout process of eligible members within the PRH sales group. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-09-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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For the third year in a row, Random House (but not its Penguin side, because the warehouses aren't integrated yet) will provide express shipping, starting November 1. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-09-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Simon & Schuster has partnered with Scandinavian ebook subscription service Mofibo to make its backlist titles available to readers in Denmark and Sweden. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-09-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Kindle is now a 'proud sponsor' of Downton Abbey. And it suits, as the show's story arc reflects the current dynamic in the publishing business. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2014-09-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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