CBS issued revised guidance to investors on Friday afternoon, forecasting “a decline of mid-teens” in operating income for fiscal 2008 compared to a year ago. They also said they expect to take a $14 billion impairment charge in the third quarter “to reduce the carrying value of goodwill, intangible assets related to FCC licenses and investments.” Earlier in the day, Sumner Redstone’s National Amusements announced that it will sell $400 million in equal amounts of Viacom and CBS shares in order reduce debt and comply with their credit agreements. The proceeds will bring the company’s debt load down to $1.2 […]
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Critical Mass says that NYT Book Review senior editor Dwight Garner has had enough and “tells us he’s leaving the Book Review very soon to become a book critic for the daily edition” of the newspaper. Jordan Brown will join the Harper Children’s imprint Walden Pond Press later this month, reporting to Brenda Bowen. He was an assistant editor at Ginee Seo Books/Atheneum. Brown will work with Debbie Kovacs at Walden Media to “craft a launch list for the imprint and to acquire and edit some eight books a year,” while acquiring and editing for Bowen Press as well. In […]
Company News: Lulu Layoffs; Harper Studio UK; and More
Lulu.com is laying off 24 employees, almost a quarter of their workforce of 100. The reductions include recently-hired president Bryce Boothby Jr. and European vp Cristel Lee Leed. The company plans to relocate its headquarters from Morrisville, NC to Raleigh within the next few months. CEO Bob Young tells NewMediaAge “with the credit and capital markets frozen solid Lulu couldn’t continue burning through money at its previous pace. We’re very disappointed…. we were forced into a position of having to cut costs.” Bob Miller’s Harper Studio has made an agreement with Harper UK to provide for direct publication in the […]
Challenges to Germany's Print Titans
Ever since Gutenberg German industry has led the way in big printing presses but now ” Germany’s dominance in spreading the written word is in danger of fading,” the WSJ reports. Heidelberger still leads the world in sheet-fed offset presses, a market in which German companies control 70 percent. But the world is moving to digital presses, and the German business faces additional challenges from less expensive Japanese machines, further helped by a weak yen. Illinois’ Goss International is a competitor as well. They bought a majority stake in Heidelberger’s web offset unit in 2004 and are now developing offset […]
Concerns Remain Over UK Suppliers
Despite boisterous remarks made by the managing director of UK wholesaler Bertram’s in The Bookseller, concerns remain about both Bertram’s and corporate sibling EUK, due to the financial troubles of parent company Woolworth’s. The founder of Amstrad computers Alan Sugar is reported by the Telegraph to have acquired a four percent stake in the company’s shares, which have fallen 80 percent in a year. Datamonitor says: “Retailers across the entertainment industry are thought to be increasingly concerned with the financial health of the market’s dominant wholesaler, EUK. The worries surrounding EUK’s parent, Woolworths Group, based on the deterioration of its […]
WH Smith: A Bookseller Whose Stock Actually Rises
WH Smith presented the market with a pleasant surprise, reporting sales of 1.352 million pounds, up 4 percent for the year, with profits rising 15 percent to 76 million pounds, above analysts’ expectations. Like-for-like book sales were “flat excluding the impact of last year’s Harry Potter release” (aka “down”). “Gross margin was up year on year. We were pleased with our share performance versus the general high street,” the company said. And among their travel stores, “extended books charts, improved display of chart titles and strong promotions have contributed to our books performance and we have also seen an encouraging […]