As part of Simon & Schuster’s move towards what they see as a “globally coordinated, strategic approach to our worldwide ebook business,” current vp, business development Doug Stambaugh has been named vp, global ebook market and development strategy, reporting to Dennis Eulau. In the newly created position, Stambaugh will evaluate opportunities for retail expansion, and new partnerships, digital channels and publishing initiatives, and develop company-wide strategies, policies and best practices in areas ranging from terms and pricing to DRM, technology platforms and new business models.
“While digital content is firmly established as a significant portion of our business, the digital arena is still evolving, with new products and business models coming our way on a daily basis. Doug will serve as the point of entry into the company to assess these new prospects, and will advise senior management in our publishing and operations groups on the many opportunities and issues that will inevitably arise in this exciting and ongoing transition,” S&S ceo Carolyn Reidy said in the announcement.
Jessica Sindler has joined Spiegel & Grau as an editor, working on narrative non-fiction, big idea self-help, humor, and style books. She was at Gotham Books.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt announced new retail payment terms, exclusive of distribution centers, effective June 1, that extend payment to net 90 days from the date of invoice (instead of 30 days). SVP, sales and marketing Laurie Brown says, “Recognizing that books must stay on shelves to allow for store promotions and discovery by readers, HMH is supporting this effort with enhanced payment terms for our retail bookselling partners.”
Hastings Entertainment reported results for its first quarter early Monday morning. The company reported a net loss of $2.2 million (or 27 cents a share), while overall book comps decreased 8.4 percent for the quarter (as compared to 0.8 percent a year ago), primarily due to “a weaker new release schedule for new books” compared to a year ago, when sales were bolstered by the Hunger Games trilogy.
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The SWFA named their Nebula Award winners, with Kim Stanley Robinson’s 2312 taking best novel, and E.C. Myers’s FAIR COIN taking the Andre Norton Award for a YA sci-fi and fantasy.