It’s been a tough competition to see which branch of the divided Barnes & Noble can register the most disappointing performance, with Barnes & Noble Education taking the lead in reporting disappointing first quarter fiscal 2018 earnings. The consolidated net loss grew to $34.8 million, or 75 cents a share, compared to a loss of $27.9 million a year ago — and against analysts’ expectations of a loss of 55 cents a share. In early Wednesday trading, shares are down more than 15 percent as a result to a new all-time low of about $5.75 a share. That puts their market […]
Archives for August 2017
People, Etc.
Ingram Content Group announced a realignment in reporting structure to “help focus efforts in Ingram’s wholesale business and their growing distribution services.” The wholesale purchasing group, led by George Tattersfield, will now report to chief commercial officer Shawn Everson, “aligning our ‘buy side’ with our ‘sell side’ in wholesale.” The shared services sales team, acquired in the Perseus deal, and led by Jeanne Emanuel, will now report to chief content officer Phil Ollila, who leads the distribution and services businesses. Frank Vrancken Peeters will join Springer Nature September 4 in the new role of chief commercial officer, reporting to the ceo, […]
BISG to Revamp Board Structure
The board of the Book Industry Study Group approved a significant set of changes to their by-laws that, when ratified at their members meeting on September 25, will reshape how the group is governed. The BISG intends to reduce the current oversized board of 33 members down to a more traditional group of 14 directors. They will also limit board members to a maximum of two consecutive two-year terms (except for the chair), after which they must rotate off for at least one year. The new board slots will be allocated specifically among distinct industry sectors, with 5 positions for publishers […]
Lawyers Free Pepe the Frog From Alt-Right Merchandising
Attorneys Louis Tompros and Don Steinberg at WilmerHale, working pro bono, have helped creator Matt Furie save his Pepe the Frog comic character — he publishes with Fantagraphics — from “misappropriation [that] in any way that espouses racism, white supremacy, Islamophobia, anti-Semitism, Nazism, or any other form of hate.” In the process, they have quashed the planned release in November by Post Hill Press of the infringing self-published book The Adventures of Pepe and Pede by Eric Hauser. The lawyers say in a press release that Hauser “admitted” to copyright infringement, and they “were able to negotiate [settlement] over the […]
Hillary, For Sale, On Tour
The first dates were announced on Monday for Hillary Clinton’s book tour, which comprises 9 book signings (six of which are in the greater New York metropolitan area) — plus a “Hillary Clinton Live” theater tour to 15 cities, where she promises to “connect with audiences with a story that’s personal, raw, detailed and surprisingly funny.” As the Chicago Tribune underscores, the minimum-price for those auditorium-based “Live” events ranges from $45 in Chicago and $55 in Washington, DC to $125 in New York. Premium tickets can sell for hundreds of dollars, and VIP experiences are also being offered, including a […]
Briefs
Interim managing editor of Freight Books Robbie Guillory is leaving the company “for personal reasons.” He took over in June following the departure of co-founder Adrian Searle in April, and the company has reportedly been up for sale. Co-founder Davinder Samrai is now running the publisher. Former head of Hearst Corporation’s trade publishing group (Avon/Morrow and other lines), and prior to that ceo of Warner Books and then publisher at Random House trade Howard Kaminsky, 77, died recently, according to PW. The full schedule for Saturday’s National Book Festival in Washington, DC is posted, along with some sample itineraries from the […]