On Wednesday at London Book Fair, Spotify director of global publishing partnerships & licensing Duncan Bruce reflected on the first 18 month since the company’s 2023 relaunch of its audiobooks program. Bruce was vague on the topic of author royalties, noting (as they have in the past) that the company has paid “hundreds of millions of dollars” to authors (PL dug into the numbers last month). But he did mention expansion in the catalog from 150,000 to 400,000 English language titles and reported that listening hours are up 35 percent in the US, UK, and Australia, with 60 percent of […]
Archives for March 2025
BNED Reports Income Growth But Dilutes Shares
Barnes & Noble Education reported results for the third quarter ended January 25, with sales up 2 percent to $466 million due to modest growth in its subscription courseware program First Day Complete. Net income grew to $7.1 million after a loss of $(9.9) million in the same period last year. But the gain is due in large part to a $7.6 million one-time benefit from “the termination of liabilities related to a frozen retirement benefit plan,” according to the company’s SEC filing. Adjusted EBITDA grew 30 percent to $27.4 million due to lower expenses from “cost-savings, productivity initiatives, and […]
People 3/12
James Daunt and David Shelley Kick Off London Book Fair
London Book Fair kicked off on Tuesday with a conversation between ceo of Barnes & Noble and managing director of Waterstones James Daunt and Hachette Book Group USA and Hachette UK ceo David Shelley. LBF chair Alex Peake-Tomkinson moderated a discussion that ranged from BookTok to the differences between the US and UK markets to AI and more. Asked what they’re optimistic about, Daunt noted that “the state of the world and politics is perhaps diverting the nonfiction reader” but the bookstores are “full of young people.” Meanwhile, Shelley said when he wants to cheer himself up about the industry […]
New Books Publishing March 11
This week’s fiction releases include books by Torrey Peters, Karen Russell, Lawrence Wright, and Lucy Score, while new nonfiction includes work from Sarah Wynn-Williams, Maureen Dowd, and the Dalai Lama. Also publishing this week is ALL THE OTHER MOTHERS HATE ME by Sarah Harman, excerpted in our Buzz Books 2025: Spring/Summer sampler. 32 works of fiction https://bookshop.org/lists/new-fiction-publishing-march-11 16 works of nonfiction https://bookshop.org/lists/new-nonfiction-publishing-march-11 From Buzz Books https://buzz.publishersmarketplace.com/ We consult a number of sources in compiling our weekly lists and PM members can see our lists for the coming months on Bookshop. Check […]
Imprints: Bloomsbury Archer
Bloomsbury is launching Bloomsbury Archer, a new sci-fi and fantasy imprint led by publishing director Vicky Leech Mateos in the UK and by publishing director Noa Wheeler and senior director of marketing and publicity Erica Barmash in the US. The imprint will launch with Samantha Shannon’s AMONG THE BURNING FLOWERS in September, and the author’s backlist will move under the imprint. Mateos’s previously acquired titles will be published under Archer as well. “The aim will be to take books to market using Bloomsbury’s brand-building toolkit, which has launched some of the biggest names in genre, while holding inclusivity and cultures […]