We already have to expand our recap of mergers and acquisitions for 2014: Workman Publishing announced the sale of its audiobook imprint HighBridge to Recorded Books as of May 1. (As noted in our list of 2014, Recorded Books itself was bought by new investors earlier this year.) Workman will continue to distribute HighBridge, and Workman imprint Algonquin will continue to license audio rights of select titles to HighBridge. The deal is notable since historically Workman has always been a buyer, not a seller, of assets. They acquired HighBridge in 2006 from Target. Carol Workman says in the announcement: “Our affiliation with HighBridge has […]
Audio
Audible Reduces ACX Royalty Payments
As of March 12, Audible is reducing the royalties it will pay out on audiobooks created through its ACX program. Currently rightsholders earn between 50 and 90 percent depending on the terms, but going forward they will receive a flat rate of 40 percent if the audiobook is distributed exclusively by Audible (both on the site and through Amazon and iTunes) and 25 percent for nonexclusive audiobooks. For royalty share deals, the amounts will be split evenly between the rightsholder and the producer. Audiobooks produced or contracted for before March 12 will still earn the original royalty rates. ACX is […]
Haights Cross Sells Recorded Books
Haights Cross Communications has sold Recorded Books to private equity fund Wasserstein & Co., with Northwestern Mutual and Lexington Partners also contributing investment capital, and financing from BNP Paribas. The company’s primary market is unabridged audiobooks for libraries, schools and the retail market, but they also distribute 100,000 ebooks through their One-Click Digital Platform. Recorded Books ceo Rich Freese says in the announcement, “This strategic partnership provides us with the resources to further broaden our content offerings and services for customers, and accelerate our growth into additional global markets.” HCC used to report publicly until they filed, and emerged from, a […]
Amazon Acquires AudioGo’s UK Catalog; Kindle Paperwhite Rumors; and More
Amazon has a licensing deal to publish the UK back catalog of bankrupt audiobook publisher AudioGo, according to the Sunday Times. The deal gives Amazon (which owns Audible) access to at least 5,000 titles from the company previously known as BBC Audiobooks. In Amazon rumor news, TechCrunch says the company’s next Kindle Paperwhite will be sold in the second quarter of 2014 and will include a high-resolution 300 ppi screen, custom typography, and an ambient light sensor. A new BBC documentary set to air Monday evening provides a behind-the-scenes look at the working conditions of one of Amazon’s UK-based warehouses, […]
Briefs: AudioGo Suspends Operations Pending Sale; Inkling Acquires OpenAir
UK-based audiobook publisher AudioGo has suspended operations and is looking for an investment or outright sale, the company’s head of sales and marketing Rachel Josephson confirmed to the the Bookseller. She added: “There is a considerable amount of interest in AudioGO and we are hopeful of achieving a swift resolution. Protecting and respecting the rights of everyone that we work with is uppermost in our considerations and we are grateful for the fantastic support we have received from our colleagues throughout the industry.” The company recently sold its US-based arm Blackstone Audio back to its founders, just ten months after […]
People, Etc.
Sarah Harrison Smith has been named children’s editor at the New York Times Book Review. She was most recently on the paper’s metropolitan desk. Scholastic unveiled the new cover designed by Kazu Kubuishi for HARRY POTTER AND THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS, which will be published on August 27 (along with the other redesigned books in the series) at BEA Thursday morning. At the Audiobook Publishers Association’s Audie Awards ceremony last night at the New-York Historical Society, Graham Greene’s The End of the Affair (read by Colin Firth, Audible) was named named Audiobook of the Year and Bram Stoker’s Dracula (multi-voiced […]