After a conversation with SAG-AFTRA, audiobook creation service Findaway Voices has agreed to “halt” licensing audiobook files to Apple for AI learning, Writer Beware reports. Writers noticed a clause in their Findaway Voices contract that stipulates that Apple can use their work “for machine learning training and models”–without paying for the license–unless the author opts out. The discovery ties into far-reaching questions about generative AI, including how–or even if–tech companies acquire permissions to use content, inaccuracies in AI output, and the creators that AI services may displace. As a third-party license, it also may be in conflict with authors’ distribution […]
Archives for February 2023
Storytel Gains 22 Percent in 2022, Suspends Guidance
Swedish streaming company Storytel released their official year-end earnings report after a brief quarterly update in January, with net sales up 22 percent in 2022 to SEK3.2 billion ($293 million), due to the acquisition of Audiobooks.com, organic growth, and positive foreign exchange. Operating loss was SEK(389) million compared to SEK(350) million last year. The company said that expenses in the period include the purchase of Audiobooks.com, a strategic shift and reorganization in the beginning of the year “to focus on profitable growth”, and an SEK8.3 million severance payment to former ceo Jonas Tellander. EBITDA was SEK(56.5) million. In personnel news, […]
Class Action Lawsuit Filed Against Macmillan For Data Breach
A former Macmillan employee, Victoria Batchelor, has filed a lawsuit seeking class action status against Macmillan in the Southern District of New York related to June’s cyber attack and data breach. The suit alleges that Macmillan failed to “protect highly sensitive data” and had “no effective means to prevent, detect, stop, or mitigate breaches of its systems—thereby allowing cybercriminals unrestricted access to employee PII.” Macmillan had disclosed a ransomware “security incident” that began on June 25 and shut their systems down for a week or more. But according to filings with state attorneys general and the new lawsuit systems, the […]
Simon & Schuster Celebrates Record Year
As was clearly in the works but is now official, Simon & Schuster is celebrating an “extraordinary, stratospheric” and record year — “the greatest year in the history of Simon & Schuster” — far exceeding $1 billion in sales for the first time ever and capping a three-year run of record results. Sales were a big $1.177 billion, up 18.5 percent, and operating income hit $248 million, up 16 percent. Those numbers compare to sales of $993 million in 2021, when operating income was $213 million. In 2020, also a record at the time, sales were $901 million and operating […]
March Library Reads
The Library Reads top pick for March is Lone Women by Victor LaValle. The list also includes Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati, which is excerpted in our Buzz Books 2023: Spring/Summer sampler.
Lagardere Publishing Gains on Acquisitions and FX, Falls on Comp Basis
Lagardere reported fourth quarter and full-year results on Wednesday after the market close in Paris. Sales at Lagardere Publishing were €752 million for the fourth quarter, down €20 million compared to the previous year, a 2.6 percent decline overall (and down 8.1 percent on a like for like basis). Foreign exchange provided a €21 million boost during the quarter due to the stronger US dollar (though was held back slightly by the declining British pound) while recent acquisitions added €23 million to sales. For the full year, sales rose €150 million to €2.748 billion — also due to a combination […]