CEO and chairman of F+W Media for the past 8 years David Nussbaum is leaving that post to become ceo of America’s Test Kitchen/Boston Common Press, starting October 14. COO and CFO Jim Ogle will serve as interim CEO of F+W as well while the board looks for a permanent replacement. Controlling owner Tinicum’s co-managing member Terence O’Toole will take on the role of chairman of the board. O’Toole says in the announcement, “We thank David for his leadership and wish him all the best in his new position. We look forward to working with Jim and the entire F+W management team to continue F+W’s transformation.” Tinicum […]
International News
Germans Ask For Second Investigation, Into Amazon’s Audio Empire
After helping to spur a European Commission investigation into Amazon’s ebook contracts with publishers, announced this June, Germany’s Publishers and Booksellers Association filed a new complaint with Germany’s Cartel Office and the EC. Now they are asking for additional scrutiny of Amazon’s Audible subsidiary, accusing the company of misusing the leverage from a near-monopoly in digital audiobooks. German accounts claim Audible wants to move publishers to a “flat-rate” service, and has threatened to stop offering publishers’ product if they do not agree to the new terms. Association head Alexander Skipis says, “The business model of Amazon and Audible is aimed […]
People
At NetGalley, Kristina Radke has been promoted to international account director, responsible for sales and account management in North America, the UK and Australia. In the UK, agent Penny Holroyde and former Hodder Children’s art director Claire Cartey launched Holroyde Cartey earlier in the year, an agency representing both authors and illustrators. Alex Christofi has joined Oneworld as editor, nonfiction. Previously he was an agent at Conville & Walsh. Diya Kar Hazra has been appointed publisher of Pan Macmillan India, reporting to Rajdeep Mukherjee. Previously Hazra was founding publisher of Bloomsbury India.
Pearson’s Fallon Will Wait on Selling Penguin Random House Stake
With Pearson able to ask Bertelsmann to buy out their minority 47 percent share of Penguin Random House as early as this October, the education company’s John Fallon told Bloomberg TV, “It’s most unlikely that we’ll exercise the option at this time.” He noted, “The business is doing well, and we are one year away from achieving peak synergies.” Perhaps more relevantly, Pearson has abundant cash coming in this year from the sale of the Financial Times and their half of the Economist, so it’s reasonable that the company would wait a bit to cash in their PRH holding. Without […]
Briefs: BitLit and Kindle Scout Expand, Scholastic UK Purchase
Amazon’s “reader-powered publishing platform” Kindle Scout is expanding beyond the US, welcoming author submissions from Europe, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Japan, and India. The company says that so far, 75 titles have been picked up for publication by Kindle Press. Also expanding is BitLit, the company that helps enable print and ebook bundling. The start-up is working with Ingram to let publishers who use CoreSource Plus for digital asset management and distribution integrate with BitLit. In the UK, Scholastic Ltd. has acquired Troubadour, which operates as The Travelling Book Company. With a network of sales agents who work with schools across the UK and Ireland, […]
People, Etc.
As Harper UK absorbs Harlequin UK as an operating division, Harlequin managing director Tim Cooper will leave the company after 12 years. Lisa Milton will take over as executive publisher of Harlequin UK on November 2, reporting to ceo Charlie Redmayne. (Milton was moved aside from her position as managing director at Orion this summer as part of a broader realignment of executives there in preparation for David Young’s retirement at the end of the year.) Laura Tisdel is returning to Viking, as an executive editor, starting on October 5, after four years at Reagan Arthur Books and Little Brown. At Knopf & […]