Authors fear the worst if Penguin owner takes over Simon & Schuster

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 ]

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BEA 2014: Big Children's Books at BEA

For readers of all ages and interests, there were no shortages of titles to grab, snag, and talk about. YA continues to generate long lines and lots of attention. At Simon & Schuster, one of the big teen titles was Scott Westerfeld's Afterworlds—and not just because BEA factors into the... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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PW Picks: Books of the Week, June 2, 2014

This week, new Stephen King, new Herman Koch, and the best literary puzzle of the summer. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Clinton Wins The Vote on Social Media

As questions continue to swirl about Hillary Clinton’s potential run for the presidency in 2016, her still-unpublished book, "Hard Choices" (Simon & Schuster), was the most buzzed about title on social media in May. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BEA 2014: Successful Longevity

In November of 2012 Herman Wouk, at age 97, spoke to Brooks Barnes of the New York Times about his newest book, The Law Giver, which had just been published by Simon & Schuster. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BEA 2014: Thrilling Thriller: Chris Pavone

After finishing his first novel, The Expats, Chris Pavone decided he wanted to place his next thriller, The Accident (Crown, Mar.), in the publishing industry. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BEA 2014: Passionate After 40 Years

You couldn’t find a more optimistic person than David Caron, owner and co-publisher of ECW Press, when it comes to the future of the publishing industry, and he is very proud of the company he’s been with for 10 years. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors on the Air May 28, 2014: Michael Waldman

Michael Waldman, author of "The Second Amendment: A Biography" (Simon & Schuster, 9781476747446), will appear on the "Diane Rehm Show" on Thursday, May 29. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Maya Angelou Dies, Aged 86

The author and activist Maya Angelou, who died at her home in North Carolina, is best known for her 1969 autobiography "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings" (Random House). Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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S&S Adds E-Book Backlist to Oyster, Scribd

Simon & Schuster has reached an agreement with subscription ebook services Oyster and Scribd to make 10,000 of its backlist ebooks available to subscribers. This is S&S’s first time offering its titles via ebook subscription services. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Global subscription deal for S&S

Simon & Schuster has partnered with Oyster and Scribd to offer subscriptions to its backlist... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-05-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Sales Fall, Earnings Rise at S&S

First quarter sales in 2014 fell 11% at Simon & Schuster, to $153 million, but operating income rose to $11 million from $10 million in the first quarter of 2013, parent company CBS reported. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Job Moves: May 6, 2014

Liz Perl has been promoted to executive v-p, marketing for Simon & Schuster. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Unprepared

As the school year winds down and many parents of high school seniors prepare to send their kids off to college in the fall, Slate wanted to share one father’s experience of coming to terms with this next chapter in parenthood. That father just happens to be Rob Lowe. The following is an adapted... Continue reading at Slate

[ Slate | 2014-05-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Religion Update Spring 2014: Love and Marriage, and Kids, and Books, Go Together

The topics of marriage and raising children are both evergreen and ever new for first-timers,” says Philis Boultinghouse, senior editor at Howard Books, a division of Simon & Schuster. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-05-02 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Pancake Day for Random

Random House is publishing another backlist title, Trilobites & Other Stories by Breece D... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-05-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors Guild Issues Call to MacAdam Cage Authors

The Authors Guild is offering legal assistance to any MacAdam Cage author who wishes to mount a legal challenge to the agreement giving control of their ebook rights to MP Publishing. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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S&S wins Letters auction

Simon & Schuster has won an auction for Letters to the Lost by Iona Grey. Clare Hey, senior... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2014-04-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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RH Adds Bookstore to Its Cooking Blog, TasteBook

Random House's food blog and online cooking community, TasteBook, has added a new bookstore called The BookShop. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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New England Has it All: Spotlight On New England 2014

New England may cull up images of bucolic fields, snow-covered mountains, sparkling lakes, and mud season, but it’s also home to a veritable who’s who of bestselling authors ranging from Stephen King, Dan Brown and Henry Louis Gates Jr. to Mary Oliver and Julia Glass. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2014-04-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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