Ian Fleming Publications Ltd has appointed Jonny Geller and Curtis Brown to represent the Ian Fleming James Bond novels and future James Bond literary works worldwide, replacing Simon Trewin and United Agents. Curtis Brown will also represent the James Bond novels written by Kingsley Amis, John Gardner and Raymond Benson as well as translation rights in the Young Bond series by Charlie Higson. Aurum’s previously announced imprint headed up by former Granta staffers Alex Clark and Rosalind Porter will be called Union Books, and they will publish 20 titles a year beginning in January 2012, starting with Donovan Hohn’s MOBY […]
Distribution
eNews: Apple Set To Lose ‘Appstore’ Suit; Carina Press Profiled; and More
A judge hearing Apple’s lawsuit against Amazon for using the term ‘appstore’ (which Apple believes is trademark) said in a hearing Wednesday she is “probably” going to rule against Apple because Apple hasn’t demonstrated confusion among consumers. U.S. District Judge Phyllis Hamilton said she will review court filings before issuing a final decision. Bloomberg Fast Company profiles Harlequin’s digital-only imprint Carina Press and its executive editor Angela James. Carina plans to publish 190 books this year, and though Harlequin never breaks out revenue for individual imprints, director of digital publishing Malle Vallik said, “We’re doing very nicely, above where we […]
People, Etc.: Norton Relaunches Liveright & Company Imprint
Norton is relaunching the literary imprint Liveright and Company under the direction of Robert Weil, who has been named publisher and editor-in-chief of the imprint. Liveright, founded by Horace Liveright (along with Albert Boni) in 1917 and whose assets Norton bought in 1974, will publish up to 20 books a year beginning in spring 2012, mostly comprised of serious non-fiction as well as literary fiction, graphic novels and works in translation. “It has long been my hope to reinvigorate the Liveright imprint and to build upon its tradition of publishing outstanding works that define and redefine our culture,” Norton chairman […]
Briefs: Amazon Nears Sales Tax Deal with Texas; Whitcoulls Sale Final; And More
After months of fighting over sales tax issues, Amazon appears to be close to a deal with the state of Texas that would see Amazon creating more than 5,000 jobs and invest $300 million in the state over the next three years, so long as Texas exempts Amazon from paying sales tax for the next four and a half years. The proposal, which does not explicitly name Amazon but , is attached to a state Senate fiscal matters bill that must be passed in order to balance the next fiscal year budget. It would also not exempt Amazon or any […]
Announcements: New Funding for Osprey, John Locke’s a Kindle Millionaire
Osprey Group announced it has received new funding from London private equity firm Alcuin Capital Partners, providing additional expansion capital to continue Osprey’s strong growth in niche and enthusiast market segments. With the investment, Alcuin acquires a controlling interest in Osprey but the company’s existing majority shareholder Botts Capital Nominees will remain a significant minority shareholder going forward. Self-published thriller phenomenon John Locke is the latest (and eighth) author to sell more than a million Kindle ebooks. Release The British Library has signed a multi-year deal that will allow Google to scan more than 250,000 out-of-copyright works from 1700 to […]
People, Etc.
At Other Press, Megan Feulner has been promoted to publicist, and Sophia Sherry has been promoted to publicity and marketing coordinator. Tisse Takagi has joined Basic Books as associate editor. Previously she was at Oxford University Press. Justina Batchelor has joined Touchstone as a publicist. She was at Crown. Jessica Shoffel joined Penguin Children’s as a publicist. She was previous in the publicity department at Random House Children’s Books. Larissa Edwards, currently associate publisher at Random House Australia, will join Simon and Schuster Australia this July in a newly created role as head of publishing, reporting to managing director Lou […]