The failure of a recent bid to merge two large publishing companies shines a light on a central issue of cultural powerDespite a rise in self-publishing, commercial publishers are still the main gatekeepers of what arrives on our bookshelves. As such, they have great cultural and – if a book takes off – economic power. A case decided in a US court this week provided an insight into just how much of that power is now concentrated in a small handful of multinational companies.At issue was a planned merger of Simon & Schuster with Penguin Random House (PRH) – two of the so-called big five, which between them control 90% of the US publishing market, a fact not always obvious to the casual observer, as books usually carry on their spines the names of imprints, or subdivisions, of the parent company. PRH, itself the result of a mega-merger in 2013, runs about 300 imprints. Given the reach of these companies – PRH is active in more than 20 countries – the Department of Justice’s successful argument that the planned $2.2bn deal would “exert outsized influence over which books are published in the United States and how much authors are paid for their work” applies globally. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2022-11-04 18:25:28 UTC ]
News tagged with:
#book takes
#planned merger
#simon schuster
#publishing market
#2bn deal
#penguin random house
#publishing companies
#book publishing
Lea Michele has appeared in several Broadway productions and stars on the Fox musical series 'Glee.' Continue reading at The Christian Science Monitor
[ The Christian Science Monitor | 2013-05-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
E-book distributor INscribe Digital has added a number of new publishing partners, taking on publishers in the university press, Christian publishing, and Spanish-language areas. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-05-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#publishing partners
#university press
#christian publishing
Amazon's taken a number of steps to bring different types of content to the Kindle Store, and it's now venturing into an area that has a long history with the internet: fan fiction. The company's today announced Kindle Worlds, a new publishing platform that promises to pay writers royalties for... Continue reading at Engadget
[ Engadget | 2013-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#warner bros
#alloy entertainment
#gossip girl
#vampire diaries
#finer details
#press release
#kindle worlds
A rare first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone with annotations and drawings by JK Rowling sells for a record £150,000. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2013-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#harry potter
Pearson PLC's book publishing business, Penguin Group, has agreed to pay $75 million to settle a dispute in the U.S. over the way it priced electronic books, drawing to a close an investigation into the publishing industry's ebook pricing tactics. Continue reading at AllThingsD
[ AllThingsD | 2013-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#penguin group
#pearson plc
#publishing industry
How can publishers optimize their social media outreach? HuffPo's Andrew Losowsky chats with Ed Nawotka on Twitter about how book marketers can maximize social media networks and influencers. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-05-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#book marketers
#ed nawotka
Arthur Attwell, founder of Paperight, explains why his company has leveraged the network of photocopy shops throughout South Africa to cater to hard-to-reach readers. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-05-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#publish ebooks
#south africa
Little, Brown's Blackfriars digital-only imprint will publish a novel created by authors... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
Total book industry sales fell to $27.12 billion in 2012, down by just under 1% from the prior year. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#trade books
#prior year
A bookseller who turns unwanted books from charity shops into miniature sculpted works of art, opens a British Academy exhibition. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2013-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#charity shops
Universities minister David Willetts this week praised the “genuine added value” of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
Submissions are now being accepted for the Wellcome Trust Book Prize, which is to be re-launched... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
Smart publishers are thinking of their business as global instead of local. This may come as a surprise to some who see it as a novelty instead of the norm. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-05-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#publishing business
The Orwell Book Prize for political writing is won by AT Williams for his book on Baha Mousa, while Marie Colvin is honoured with a posthumous award. Continue reading at BBC News
[ BBC News | 2013-05-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#orwell prize
#political writing
#baha mousa
#posthumous award
"Heck, Amazon is selling these books at $9.99, and who knows maybe they are right and we will fail even at $12.99." Continue reading at AllThingsD
[ AllThingsD | 2013-05-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#james murdoch
The gist: "Apple knew that the plan it was proposing involved a ‘dramatic business change’ for publisher defendants." Continue reading at AllThingsD
[ AllThingsD | 2013-05-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
Apple has responded to the US Department of Justice's charge that it conspired with... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2013-05-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this |
Jeffrey Yamaguchi, Director of Digital Marketing at Abrams Books, talks about what today's book marketers need in their toolbox to execute successful advertising campaigns. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives
[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-05-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#digital marketing
#abrams books
#book marketers
Concerned about Amazon.com's low pricing of ebooks, publishers had taken measures as early as 2009 such as "windowing," a practice of delaying ebook releases to benefit sales of hardcover editions, Apple said in a filing in an ebook price-fixing lawsuit.The U.S. Department of Justice in an... Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2013-05-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#low pricing
#hardcover editions
#antitrust lawsuit
#agency model
#district court
#southern district
#app store
Jenkintown, PA (May 14, 2013) — MEI Portico™ version 2.5 has been released today as part of Managing Editor Inc.’s lineup of solutions for digital publishers. MEI's Portico delivers a tailored app experience ... Continue reading at Editor & Publisher
[ Editor & Publisher | 2013-05-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
More news stories like this | News stories tagged with:
#released today
#managing editor
#digital publishers