Barnes & Noble has settled with Spring Design over the 2009 lawsuit on whether the Nook’s design breached patent agreements for the now discontinued Alex Reader. Under terms of the agreement, Spring is granting Barnes & Noble a non-exclusive license for all of its patents and patent applications. Other terms of the settlement were not disclosed.Release McGraw-Hill has bought Bookette Software Co., a privately held provider of automated scoring for tests, including written exams.Terms of the deal were not disclosed.Release AbeBooks’ European division will acquire ZVAB.com, a leading online marketplace of German rare antiquarian books, from Mediantis AG. The acquisition […]
Archives for March 2011
EU Raids Publishers’ Offices as Part of Price-Fixing Investigation
Numerous reports out of Europe this morning indicate that the European Commission conducted surprise inspections of various publishers in several countries on the grounds of possible e-book price-fixing. Amelia Torres, spokeswoman for Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia, confirmed the investigation to the AFP, saying that “the competition services Tuesday conducted inspections in publishing houses in several European Union countries due to suspicion of anti-competition practices in the pricing of e-books” on the grounds that “the companies concerned may have violated EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and other restrictive business practices.” Torres stressed the EU was “not naming the publishing houses […]
Marked Shift From Print to Digital Lead to Sales and Profit Drop for Harlequin
Harlequin’s parent company Torstar reported that the publishing unit had fourth quarter sales of $120 million (CA), down two percent from last year, with EBITDA falling more sharply to $18.3 million, million, down 17 percent compared to $21.3 million a year ago. They say the overall drop was largely due to a weaker US economy, which caused fewer print books to be sold, as well as a more marked shift from print to digital books. To that end, digital revenues were up $5.5 million in the fourth quarter, “reflecting the strong growth of the e-book market including the positive impact […]
Harper Explains E-Book Circulation Cap As A Way to “Find the Best Model For All Parties”
With librarians growing increasingly (and vociferously) critical of HarperCollins’ recent announcement that it would cap e-book lending circulation to 26 checkouts, President of Sales Josh Marwell published an open letter outlining the rationale for the company’s decision. Early on he states HarperCollins’ goal is “to continue to sell e-books to libraries, while balancing the challenges and opportunities that the growth of e-books presents to all who are actively engaged in buying, selling, lending, promoting, writing and publishing books.” Arriving at the number 26 came about after “many months examining the issues”, discussing the matter with agents, distributors and librarians. In […]
People, Awards, Etc.
As part of Bloomsbury’s global restructuring, co-founder and managing director of Berlin Verlag Elisabeth Ruge will be stepping down as of March 15th.Publishing Perspectives At Henry Holt and Company, Lauren Culley has been promoted to assistant editor. Marcus Gipps has been appointed editor at sci-fi and fantasy imprint Gollancz. Previously he was the sales and events manager for Blackwell’s. Linda Clark Associates has been appointed literary scout for Dalai Editore,Milan (formerly Baldini,Castaldi,Dalai) effective immediately. First Lady Michelle Obama, U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, and a host of film, television and sports personalities will join the National Education Association today […]
Briefs: HMV Warns It May Violate Banking Covenants; Debts Owed to REDGroup Creditors; Lewis Sued for Defamation by Asset Manager; and More
As speculation mounts over whether minority stakeholder Alexander Mamut will buy Waterstone’s, the chain’s parent company HMV warned investors this morning that it expects to violate banking covenants as a result of full-year profits falling below expectations. While HMV said it was in talks with lenders to amend its credit loan agreements, which remain available, chief executive Simon Fox admitted in a statement that “trading conditions remain tough, reflecting a difficult consumer environment as well as the changing markets in which we operate.” He added that HMV “is adapting quickly to respond to these external factors, and we are confident […]