As expected, on Wednesday the full details of the proposed settlement agreement in Apple’s ebook pricing litigation were filed with Judge Denise Cote. (Previously, the terms of the agreement had not been announced.) In a “pragmatic settlement,” the parties agreed to three possible outcomes, which could have Apple paying as much as $450 million. But no payments will be made any time soon, since it hinges on “resolution of Apple’s appeal,” which could be a long time away depending upon how far they are able to pursue it. If Apple ultimately loses their current appeal, they will pay $400 million in […]
Archives for July 2014
Bookselling: Employees Buy Women & Children First, Hastings Sale Finalized
Chicago’s Women & Children First Bookstore has been sold to two employees, Lynn Mooney and Sarah Hollenbeck, the Windy City Times reported. Their winning bid was one of “eight formal offers” made to owners and founders Linda Bubon and Ann Christophersen. Separately, as expected, the sale of Hastings to a company controlled by Joel Weinshanker was formally approved by shareholders on Tuesday. Weinshanker says in the release, “It’s an honor and a privilege to be able to be part of the next chapter of such an important American retailer as Hastings. We will continue to run the business with the same […]
Amazon Prepares Kindle Unlimited Subscription Offer Launch
As we have reported previously on multiple occasions, Amazon has been talking to publishers about an ebook subscription offering for some time now — and a cached version of a page that was put up recently and then taken down confirms the basic details. “Kindle Unlimited” is the name of the program, which promises “unlimited access to over 600,000 titles and thousands of audiobooks…for just $9.99 a month.” That cached page prominently promotes big series — Lord of the Rings; Harry Potter; and The Hunger Games. Amazon already had a big, direct license for Harry Potter for Kindle Owner’s Lending […]
People, Etc.
Lisa Yoskowitz will join Little, Brown Books for Young Readers as executive editor on July 21. Previously she was senior editor at Disney-Hyperion. At Chronicle Books, Kelli Chipponeri has been promoted to editorial director, children’s. Noah Ballard has joined Curtis Brown as a literary agent. He had previously been with Emma Sweeney Agency. He will continue to represent literary fiction, thrillers and narrative non-fiction. 800-CEO-READ announced a number of changes following the retirement of founder and president Jack Covert. Sally Haldorson has been promoted to general manager and will oversee day-to-day operations of the company. Aaron Schleicher takes over as […]
What Moonves Actually Said
A short WSJ piece about an on-stage interview between CBS ceo Leslie Moonves and — ironically, a Fortune reporter at a Fortune forum in Aspen, CO — has traveled far and wide, and been stretched far and wide as it traveled. As we reported previously, Amazon is known to have been in discussions with other publishers besides Hachette Book Group about significantly revised selling terms, particularly for ebooks. Here is the precise discussion, in toto, between Fortune’s Adam Lashinsky and Moonves. You can watch the video, beginning at about 14:53, to confirm. Moonves: [Completing a long answer about all kinds of competitors who are […]
Agreements: Curtis Brown UK Unit Pairs with BBC, and More
Cuba Pictures, the film and tv development arm of Curtis Brown UK, has a first-look deal with BBC Worldwide, which will “provide investment, co-production expertise, access to their market research and development initiatives in addition to their global marketing reach.” Cuba Pictures ceo Nick Marston says, “Our aim is to bring together writers, directors and literary material in unique collaborations to create some first-class television. This partnership with BBC Worldwide will hopefully ensure that our work will get the best global support and we look forward to working together on future upcoming projects.” The two have already been working together on a […]