E-book publishers side with Apple, ask DoJ to scrap new price-fixing rules

Apparently Apple isn't the only company thinking the US Department of Justice's recently imposed remedies against it were "draconian." US publishers HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Penguin and others have also ganged up on the DOJ with a legal brief opposing the punitive restrictions. In it, they say the watchdog is "attempting to impose a specific business model on the publishing industry," despite assertions it wouldn't play that role. If you'll recall, Apple was recently found guilty of price-fixing following charges filed last year. Now, the Justice Department is trying to force Apple to end its current agreements with the publishers and let rival ebook retailers like Amazon link to their own online stores. Apple earlier condemned the decision, saying it was "wildly out of proportion to any... wrongdoing or potential harm." The publishers added that it effectively punishes them by prohibiting the so-called agency model, which lets them set their own prices for ebooks and other media. A similar affair was settled rather more amicably in Europe, meanwhile, when the same band of publishers agreed to allow other retailers to sell ebooks cheaper than Apple does, if they so choose. Evidently, they feel the DOJ overstepped its bounds in the US and seem intent to back Apple to the bitter end. Filed under: Apple Comments Source: AFP Continue reading at 'Engadget'

[ Engadget | 2013-08-08 00:00:00 UTC ]

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Spanning the Globe

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Lightning strikes 50:50 deals

A new publishing model has launched, offering authors a 50% share of revenue on book sales.  Lightning Books, the fiction imprint of the newly created Eyestorm Media, operates a co-publishing model. It was founded by Eye Books owner Dan Hiscocks, a former director of the Independent Publishers’... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Playster Streaming Service to Offer Simon & Schuster Ebooks

Playster, a digital multimedia streaming platform, will now sell ebooks from Simon & Schuster on a subscription basis. The post Playster Streaming Service to Offer Simon & Schuster Ebooks appeared first on Publishing Perspectives. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2015-04-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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S&S‘ six-figure Peterson poach

Novelist Alice Peterson has moved from Quercus to Simon & Schuster in a six-figure deal. S&S publishing director Jo Dickinson bought world rights to two novels from The Agency Group’s Diana Beaumont, in the latter’s first deal since joining the company from the Rupert Heath Literary Agency. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Liz Thomson to Step Down at BookBrunch

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Horobin to join Bonnier Publishing Fiction

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[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Tasker to Join Readerlink

Tasker, who has held positions at Simon & Schuster and Scholastic, most recently served as v-p, product development at Disney Publishing Worldwide. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon and HarperCollins renew friendship with multi-year contract

Amazon started mending its tattered relationship with the big five publishers last year, signing deals with Macmillan, Simon & Schuster and even Hachette. Now it's HarperCollins' turn to make peace with the e-commerce giant, according to The Wall Str... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2015-04-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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S&S change sales and children's staff

Simon & Schuster has promoted Gill Richardson to the role of sales director, as Elv Moody steps down from the position of editorial director of children's fiction. Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Oyster launches ebook store

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[ The Bookseller | 2015-04-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Frankfurt Book Fair Unveils New Opener: Digital Spotlight 2015

Through countless discussions, experiments, challenges, and conferences, the digital transition has been front and center in the publishing industry for over a decade now. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Surprise Project Becomes S&S Big London Book

The backstory of Steven Rowley’s new nearly seven-figure book deal with Simon & Schuster is the stuff of publishing fairy tales. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishing Industry Antics on April Fools

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[ Publishers Weekly | 2015-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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5 Digital Magazine Trends to Keep an Eye On in 2015

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[ Publishing Executive | 2015-04-01 00:00:00 UTC ]
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S&S signs Sitwell

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[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Seafaring cat tale to S&S

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[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Legality of Spotify’s lyrics feature called into question

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Horobin to leave Simon & Schuster

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[ The Bookseller | 2015-03-05 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Puffin, Pan Mac and PRH win Marketing Society prizes

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[ The Bookseller | 2015-02-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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