On Friday the AAP and Internet Archive jointly filed with US District Court Judge John Koeltl the long-awaited proposed consent judgment and permanent injunction, following the judge’s forceful and unequivocal ruling from March finding the IA guilty of “wholesale copying and unauthorized lending” on a “mass” scale. Most importantly for the near term, they ask to the court to enter a permanent injunction that “is effective immediately and shall not be stayed pending [any] appeal” that means the illegal distribution of the named plaintiffs’ full catalogs of in-copyright books will stop right away (within 14 days of providing notice). Because […]
Harper’s Sales and Earnings Fall to Close “A Tough Year”
Harper Collins reported a weak end to a difficult fiscal year, with fourth quarter sales of $446 million down $67 million from a year ago, 13 percent lower. EBITDA suffered even more, at just $16 million, compared to $47 million a year ago. $20 million of that gap was due to the calendar — with an additional 14th week included in last year’s quarter. The company also lost some revenue to foreign exchange. Broadly, News Corp. cited “lower book sales due to lower consumer demand industry-wide, [and] weak frontlist performance, which contributed to higher returns.” Earnings fell on a mix […]
Backman Signs with UTA
Bestelling author Fredrik Backman has signed with UTA for representation in all areas, after terminating his longtime representatives at the Salomonsson Agency earlier this year and waiting for a notice period to pass. UTA says they “will represent Backman across various divisions, expanding his publishing business alongside media rights, theater, podcasts and more.” Co-head of UTA Publishing Byrd Leavell said in their announcement, “We’re thrilled to welcome Fredrik Backman to the UTA family. His emotionally resonant and insightful work has made an impact on countless readers across generations, myself among them, and we’re looking forward to helping him reach even […]
Klopotek Sells Majority Stake to Aspire Software Owner
ERP solutions company Klopotek has sold a majority stake in their business to Canada-based Valsoft, whose holdings include Aspire Software. Founder and ceo Ulrich Klopotek von Glowczewski will “step down from all his roles effective immediately due to personal reasons.” CTO and co-ceo Peter Karwowski will take over as ceo. Operating partner of Aspire Software Rafael Mazzeo says in the announcement, “The acquisition of Klopotek aligns seamlessly with their mission to remain at the forefront of the publishing technology domain, equipping publishers with advanced tools and solutions to navigate the evolving landscape successfully. The world class management team at Klopotek […]
Simon & Schuster Maintains Sales, Grows Income In Second Quarter
Paramount Global also reported second quarter earnings on Monday afternoon, including solid results for Simon & Schuster, which continues to lead in performance among the reporting large trade publishers. Sales were just below flat at $292 million — compared to $293 million in 2022, which was a high comp to meet, since that quarter sales were up 34 percent from $219 million in 2021. Operating income continued to grow further still, at $91 million, up 14 percent from $80 million a year ago. Sales for the first half of the year are up 8 percent over 2022, and operating income […]
People 8/8
VP, director of publishing for the Clarion group Mary Wilcox will leave the company on August 25, after over 20 years at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and then Harper Collins.