Despite ongoing controversy and the threat of a government lawsuit (and Navy SEALS being pulled off active duty as a consequence), Dutton is publishing NO EASY DAY by “Mark Owen” (the pen name for the retired SEAL Matt Bissonnette) today as scheduled. But things got weirder over the weekend when a group of former Special Operations veterans released a short ebook of their own, NO EASY OP: The Unclassified Analysis of the Mission That Killed Osama bin Laden, as a $4.99 KDP exclusive. It claims Bissonnette (the Times, and the ebook, uses his real name throughout) was “willing to break the […]
Archives for September 2012
BN College Shareholder Suit Settlement Goes Before Judge
This Tuesday a Delaware Court of Chancery holds a hearing on the proposed settlement of shareholders’ suits against Barnes & Noble over the handling of the purchase of BN College. The settlement calls for Len Riggio to forgo $22.75 million of the principal on a $150 million note that the company still owes him for the transaction, and he will sacrifice $6.3 million of the way-above-market interest that BN is paying on the note. (While borrowing costs are near record lows, the company is paying 10 percent interest.) BN has objected to the proposal that the attorneys get $11 million of […]
Company Source Says Idea of A Bertelsmann IPO Is Off Again; Flammarion Sells for Less; Tesco Buys Mobcast
Shortly after Bertelsmann changed its corporate structure to allow for a modest offering of shares to the public–albeit a small stake, with limited or no influence over how the company is run–a source inside the company tells Germany’s financial newspaper Handelsblatt “a flotation is off the table as the family doesn’t want an IPO.” New ceo Thomas Rabe is the one who told press in March that the organizational change “opens up the option of raising equity from third parties,” noting that “clearly if we are going to make more strategic and sizable investments, then more capital will be required.” But […]
State eBook Settlement Will Actually Cost $78.9 Million
Complete documents for the proposed settlement between the states and Hachette, Harper and Simon & Schuster still have not appeared in the US Federal Court’s electronic docket, but the Connecticut Attorney General’s office provided us with some of the key filings. The total amount to be paid out by the publishers is actually $78.9 million. (In addition to the $69 million in consumer compensation, they are paying the states $7.625 million in legal fees–presumably split equally among the three since it isn’t specified–but also another $2.25 million not previously announced for “costs associated with administering the settlements.” The consumer compensation […]
People, Awards, Etc.
On Friday, Library Journal abruptly announced the immediate departure of editor-in-chief Francine Fialkoff, after 15 years of running the magazine. Executive editor Michael Kelley has taken over as interim editor-in-chief. “Fialkoff plans to stay in the library world.” At Harlequin, Emily Rodmell has been promoted to editor at the Love Inspired imprint. Ellen Gerstein will join Grand Central as vp, director of marketing, starting September 10 and reporting directly to Jamie Raab. She was the director of marketing in the professional/trade division at Wiley for almost two decades. Alice Rahaeuser has joined Random House Children’s as production associate, reporting to Timothy Terhune. Most […]