Editorial director of Rizzoli Paolo Zaninoni is leaving after almost ten years at the company. General manager of RCS trade books Massimo Turchetta will replace Zainoni on an interim basis. In addtion, Federica Magro has been named manager of Bur and Vintage paperbacks. Previously she was an editor at Mondadori. At Simon & Schuster Children’s, Liesa Abrams has been promoted to executive editor and moves from Aladdin to Simon Pulse, though she will continue to edit Aladdin’s Dork Diaries, Unwanteds and Beyonders. In addition, Annette Pollert moves up to editor, while Karen Nagel has been promoted to executive editor at […]
eNews
Hachette Further Clarifies Higher eBook Library Pricing
In follow-up correspondence Hachette spokesperson Sophie Cottrell clarified some additional points relating to its change of terms with ebook distributors to libraries and the “internal systems issue” that apparently delayed OverDrive’s ability to implement the new terms. Hachette reports that they did indeed realize several months ago that OverDrive had not ingested their library ONIX feed, adding “we don’t know why the OD system had more difficulties than others and have been working with them to resolve their issues.” The other library vendors Hachette works with “experienced no delay in ingesting new ONIX and reflecting new prices to their customers” […]
Higher Hachette Library eBook Pricing Draws Attention
In an email to customers Thursday afternoon, Overdrive told library customers to expect a substantial increase in prices on the catalog of Hachette Book Group ebooks they make available for library purchase (approximately 3,500 titles released prior to April 2010) by what they said is an average of about 220 percent. (A separate post from the distributor cites sample increases for individual titles ranging from 50 percent to 150 percent.) Overdrive said libraries could purchase ebooks at the old, lower prices up until midnight September 30. What’s missing from many other reports–and the Overdrive letter–is that Hachette says they “had […]
eNews: Amazon Publishing Promotes Sales Figures; Kobo Pairs With Livraria Cultura In Brazil; And More
In a letter to agents obtained by paidContent, vp, Amazon Publishing Jeff Belle touted supposed sales figures on a handful of titles released by the company’s West Coast imprints to encourage agents to publish with Amazon, saying he was “energized by the early results.” Among the citations, Belle said the cumulative sales numbers for the 87th Precinct titles by Ed McBain reissued by Thomas & Mercer over the past year exceeded 250,000 units (but that’s across several dozens of books); Sean Chercover’s thriller THE TRINITY GAME, published in July, “is already well on its way to surpassing 100,000 copies,” and […]
Elliott Exiting As Monsoon CEO
CEO of Monsoon Commerce Brian Elliott is stepping down from his position immediately, with president Kanth Gopalpur taking over. Elliott will work with Gopalpur “to ensure a seamless leadership transition….over the upcoming months.” The combination of Alibris, Monsoon, and Stone Edge Technologies, Monsoon Commerce notes they raised another $8 million in financing earlier in the year, with Oak Hill Capital Partners remaining as majority owner. The company is rellocating resources from their commerce business to their software business, “affecting staff primarily at the company’s headquarters in Emeryville, CA.” They have “eliminated about 10 positions in the Alibris business” as a […]
How the State Settlement Will Boost the Book Business
Yes, it’s another settlement piece. But there’s some good news for the entire industry that has not been fully appreciated yet. While the pending settlement with the states will cost the Settlers money, almost all of that money–and potentially more–will flow right back into the book business. The way the settlement is constructed, you could consider it a little Book Publishing Stimulus Act, particularly since the proceeds will be available to consumers in time for the busiest book-buying time of the year. The Stimulus Act endeavors to put about $65 million into the hands of people who bought ebooks from […]