The National Book Foundation will launch a new prize for books by diverse authors writing about science and technology, backed by a three-year, $525,000 grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. Three books a year will receive $10,000 awards, with the first titles to be selected in winter/spring 2022. The Science + Literature program is charged with “exploring the connection between science and the humanities” in order to “deepen readers’ understanding of science and technology with a focus on work that celebrates, highlights, and contributes to the diversity of voices in scientific writing.” Vice president and program director at the […]
Another Possible Sale or IPO Based On Your Content
It’s been a heady year for M&A among internet platforms that feature written and book-length content, including sales of Wattpad (to Naver, for about $600 million); VitalSource (to Francisco Partners); NetGalley and Quality Solutions/Firebrand (to Media Do International); Glose (to Medium); Radish (to Kakao Entertainment for $440 million); Tapas Media (to Kakao Entertainment for $510 million); and Epic (to Byju for $500 million) — as well as the giant sale of ProQuest to Clarivate for $5.3 billion. Another possible deal looms for document host and subscription service Scribd, as reported by Bloomberg recently. They note: “The company has held talks […]
More on Scholastic’s New Controlling Shareholder, and the Surprise of Robinson’s Will
The WSJ embellishes at length on the surprise revelation we reported on two weeks ago: The naming of Scholastic executive Iole Lucchese as heir to the late Dick Robinson’s controlling Class A shares in the company. The Journal says that Robinson’s will also gives all of his personal possessions to Lucchese, “with the request, but not the direction” that she distribute items to others, such as his two sons, “as she believes to be in accordance with my wishes.” It is still not clear the disposition of about $70 million in common stock in Scholastic owned by Robinson (nor is […]
Maryland Libraries Propose New Digital Licensing Terms Under Potentially Unconstitutional Law
Maryland’s new vague Digital Content Law, compelling publishers to license digital books and audiobooks “on reasonable terms that would enable public libraries to provide library users with access to the electronic literary product,” is considered by publishers to be blatantly unconstitutional. But it has yet to be challenged in court, so the Maryland Library Association is moving forward in advance of implementation at the beginning of 2022 to explain what they believe comprises “reasonable terms.” While the law does not define the terms any further, the MLA believes existing terms “often may not have been defined as ‘reasonable’ by library […]
Obituary: Roberto Calasso, 80
Author and longtime leader of Italian publisher Adelphi, Roberto Calasso, 80, died on Wednesday following a long illness. In 2015 he bought back Rizzoli’s majority share in Adelphi, where he worked for almost 60 years, to prevent its sale to Mondadori. Rival publishing house Feltrinelli said, “Roberto Calasso has been and will continue to be a central figure of reference for the Italian and international literary panorama.” In the US, Farrar, Straus will publish Calasso’s new book, The Book of All Books, in November, and his The Tablet of the Destinies will follow in 2022. Calasso’s longtime editor, FSG president Jonathan […]
Earlier Kindle Models Will Get Bricked As Carriers Drop Older Networks
Cellphone carriers are sunsetting their 2G and 3G (and CDMA) networks, which means that a number of older Kindle ereaders will lose their cellphone connectivity. The earliest models will lose their internet connectivity entirely as a result. A number of other models, “from the third-gen Kindle Keyboard all the way to the 8th-gen Kindle Oasis,” will lose their cell-based service but at least retain wifi capability. Amazon notified customers of the coming changes by email and is providing a $50 credit towards a new device and and $15 in ebook credits.