The steady stream continues of publishers offering programs to encourage independent booksellers to order directly, following Baker & Taylor‘s announcement on May 1 that they will withdraw from trade wholesaling. The latest announcements are from Hachette Book Group and Independent Publishers Group. Under the HBG plan, any independent bookstore who does not already have an…
eNews
Wiley to Buy Knewton
Just days after the Cengage and McGraw-Hill merger announcement, Wiley announced a deal to buy the assets of ed-tech firm Knewton, in a transaction expected to close by the end of the month. The price was not disclosed — though Knewton was reportedly being offered at a “fire sale” price, with EdSurge saying, “There were…
Kobo CEO Tamblyn’s Tips for Raising eBook Revenues
It’s only appropriate that a Book Industry Study Group (BISG) annual meeting Friday that opened with predictions of continuing tight markets for book paper and manufacturing concluded with Kobo (“often thought of as ‘Kobo-Who-We-Wish-Were-Bigger-In-the-US’”) ceo Michael Tamblyn running down six ways to sell more digital product — and retain readers’ attention — with better metadata….
Digital: Scribd Adds Originals, Microsoft Withdraws Again
Subscription service Scribd is launching Scribd Originals, a “content program that will enable authors to connect with new readers through experimental works published exclusively” on the site. The program launches today with political reporter Garrett Graff’s piece, Mueller’s War. Other participating authors include Roxane Gay, Hilton Als, Paul Theroux, Peter Heller, and Mark Seal. A…
People, Etc.: Teicher to Retire From ABA
American Booksellers Association ceo since 2009 Oren Teicher announced Monday that he will retire at the end of the year. The ABA board has retained the search firm of Isaacson, Miller and has appointed a search committee, intending to complete the search process by September 30. Teicher said, “To say the least, this was not a…
People, Etc.
Veronica Park has joined Fuse Literary as an associate agent. She was previously literary agent and marketing specialist at Corvisiero Literary Agency. Alexandra Franklin has been promoted to associate agent at the Vicky Bijur Literary Agency. Maya Baran has joined Viking Penguin as publicity manager, returning to publishing full-time. Most recently she has assisted Broadside PR…