Book sales hit record highs in 2019, but publishers ‘now need help’

Figures for last year show sales of £6.3bn, up 20% on 2015, but the Publishers Association says sector needs government support to weather coronavirusBook sales in the UK hit record levels in 2019, driven by a surge in audiobook and nonfiction titles, according to new figures released as publishers warn of the huge impact that the coronavirus pandemic has had on the industry.Book sales rose to £6.3bn in 2019, up 4% on 2018, when sales fell for the first time in five years, and 20% on 2015. According to the latest figures from the Publishers Association (PA), overall print sales were up 3% to £3.5bn in 2019 and digital sales were up 4% to £2.8bn, driven by a 39% increase in audiobook downloads. Digital formats accounted for 44% of the market in 2019, up from 40% in 2015. Related: Harry Potter books prove UK lockdown hit despite JK Rowling trans rights row Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2020-07-21 23:01:08 UTC ]

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The Essex Serpent beats Beatrix and Harry Potter to book prize

Sarah Perry's novel The Essex Serpent is named Waterstones Book of the Year ahead of a Beatrix Potter manuscript and a Harry Potter playscript. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2016-12-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Multi-Academy Trusts 'will be the new product innovators'

Publishers should seek to partner with top-performing multi-academy trusts (MATs) on new product development or risk being bypassed, the Publishers Association's education conference heard on Friday (25th November). Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Monthly StatShot, June 2016

Sales of adult trade books dropped 2.8% in the first half of 2016, compared to the same period in 2015, according to figures released by the Association of American Publishers as part of its StatShot program. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-11-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Warner Bros. to buy the rest of digital video company Machinima

Warner Bros. has signed a deal to buy the gamer-focused YouTube network Machinima in order to expand the movie and TV studio’s digital video business, the company said Thursday. Burbank-based Warner Bros., the studio behind film franchises like Harry Potter and DC Entertainment, was already a... Continue reading at Los Angeles Times

[ Los Angeles Times | 2016-11-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Adult Books Sales Fell in First Half of 2016

Sales of adult trade books dropped 2.8% in the first half of 2016 compared to the same period in 2015, according to figures released by the Association of American Publishers. Sales in the children’s/young adult segment, meanwhile, rose 0.9% in the same period. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-11-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harry Potter helps Hachette UK to 30% third quarter sales rise

The release of the Harry Potter and the Cursed Child playscript, published by Little, Brown, has helped Hachette UK to grow its sales by 30.1% in the third quarter, according to results issued by its parent company Lagardere. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cunningham auctions personal Beedle The Bard edition

Chicken House m.d. Barry Cunningham, the man who acquired the manuscript for J K Rowling's Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone in the late 1990s, is selling his unique edition of The Tales of Beedle the Bard at Sotheby’s. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harry and Beatrix Potter face off on eclectic Waterstones book of the year shortlist

Sarah Perry’s The Essex Serpent is the only novel on the six-book shortlist, up against JK Rowling’s play script for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and a long-lost Beatrix Potter storySarah Perry’s novel The Essex Serpent might have missed out on the big literary prizes this year, but her... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-11-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harry Potter and Beatrix Potter up for Waterstones book of the year

A Harry Potter script and a Beatrix Potter story are among the titles up for Waterstones Book of the Year 2016. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2016-11-08 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Digital sales down 19%, but print strong for trade publishers in first half

Trade publishers’ digital revenues have fallen by 19% in the first six months of the year, but print sales are holding strong, new figures from the Publishers Association have revealed. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Harry Potter: Rare book could fetch £500,000 at auction

A one-off edition of a Harry Potter spin-off book, handwritten by JK Rowling, is being sold by its owner. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2016-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AAP Reports Uptick in Trade Sales for May

Sales of adult trade books rose 8.9% this May, over May 2015, according to figures released by the Association of American Publishers in its StatShot program. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-10-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Jim Broadbent writes graphic novel inspired by Bruegel

Dull Margaret, a darkly humorous tale illustrated by the artist DIX, is tipped to be a hot property at the Frankfurt book fairThe actor Jim Broadbent is making his first foray into fiction with a graphic novel inspired by Pieter Bruegel the Elder’s 16th-century painting of a “strong, intense... Continue reading at The Guardian

[ The Guardian | 2016-10-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cursed Child boosts Scholastic Corp revenues

Sales of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child has given US-based Scholastic Corp a huge boost, as the company has today posted a first quarter revenue increase of 48%. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Monthly StatShot, March 2016

Sales of adult books fell 10.3% in the first quarter of 2016 compared to the first period of 2015, and sales of children’s/YA dipped 2.1%, according to figures released by the AAP’s StatShot program. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-09-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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'Cursed Child' Drives Big Gains in Scholastic's Trade Group

Sales of 'Harry Potter and the Cursed Child' helped add almost $70 million to Scholastic’s trade division in the quarter ended August 31, and drove a 104% jump in revenue in the company’s children’s book publishing and distribution group. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-09-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Trade Book Sales Down in Q1 of 2016

According to figures released by the AAP's StatShot program, sales of adult books fell 10.3% and sales of children's/YA titles fell 2.1%, compared to the same period last year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2016-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Cursed Child clings on for a sixth week at number one

J K Rowling and Jack Thorne’s Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Little, Brown) has held on to the number one spot for a sixth week—by the tips of its fingers. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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High five for Cursed Child in book chart

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Little, Brown) has racked up five weeks as the Official UK Top 50 number one—but the gap is closing. According to Nielsen BookScan’s Total Consumer Market, the playscript sold 36,485 copies for £455,824, just 7,503 units above runner-up The Girl on the Train... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-07 00:00:00 UTC ]
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PA lobbies government over EU trade barriers and copyright

The Publishers Association has called on the government to keep European Union trade barriers to an “absolute minimum” and to encourage investment in the UK via stronger copyright rules during its Brexit negotiations. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2016-09-06 00:00:00 UTC ]
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