At an event in Paris, Spotify announced an expansion of their audiobooks efforts, now providing premium subscribers in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg with 12 hours of included free audiobook listening every month. Managing Director, Spotify Western Europe Antoine Monin says in the announcement, “Spotify’s reach presents a significant opportunity to expand the audiobooks market across France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg.” He indicates they have added 15,000 French and 15,000 Dutch and Flemish titles to their catalog. Spotify launched their offering of free audiobook listening a year ago, and they say in the release, “While it’s still early […]
International News
Minority Investor to Become Sole Owner of Germany’s Suhrkamp
German businessman Dirk Möhrle will become the sole owner of 100-year-old publisher Suhrkamp on November 1, increasing the minority 39 percent stake in the company he has held since 2015, buying out the Siegfried and Ulla Unseld Family Foundation and the Ströher family. Jonathan Landgrebe’s position will “remain unaffected by these changes.” He writes: “I continue to take great pleasure in assuming the responsibilities that go along with the rich traditions of this publishing house. And I am happy to say that in Dirk Möhrle, we have someone by our side who has already proven himself to be a reliable, […]
S&S Australia to Acquire Affirm Press
Simon & Schuster Australia has an agreement to acquire Australian independent publisher Affirm Press. In conjunction with Affirm, S&S plans to grow their local publishing publishing program and expand further into children’s. Affirm will maintain its brand independence, operating as a subsidiary of Simon & Schuster Australia. Employees will be able to enroll in S&S’s ownership program. The deal is “subject to customary closing conditions.” “We are immensely proud to have built Affirm Press to the company it is today,” said Affirm Press ceo and publishing director Martin Hughes in a release, “And excited at the opportunity to become part […]
German Bookseller Weltbild Will Close
With no buyer to be found, German bookseller Weltbild will close its 14 remaining stores by the end of August and liquidate. Most of the approximately 440 employees will lose their jobs. But Augsburger Allgemeine reports that the country’s leading bookseller Thalia is interested in acquiring assets from the bankruptcy estate — including inventory, trademark rights and the Tolino ereader and ebook business. Thalia has submitted an application to the Federal Cartel Office regarding its purchase interest.
German Publisher Drops HILLBILLY ELEGY
German publisher Ullstein has dropped its translation of JD Vance’s Hillbilly Elegy in response to his becoming Donald Trump’s running mate, Der Spiegel reports. The German edition is out of print, and last week Ullstein decide to let their licensing agreement lapse. “At the time of publication, the book made a valuable contribution to understanding the disintegration of US society,” the publisher said. “He is now officially acting on [Tump’s] side and represents an aggressive, demagogic, exclusionary policy.” The rights have been picked up by German publisher YES, which will release a new German edition on August 15. “We bought […]
Editis in Talks to Acquire Delcourt
Editis has entered exclusive negotiations to acquire French comics publisher Groupe Delcourt. The deal would give strengthen Editis’ offerings in the comics and manga business, while Delcourt would benefit from the support of a major publishing group. Delcourt president Guy Delcourt would “remain at the head of the house he founded nearly 40 years ago, and whose identity and operational autonomy would be preserved,” a release states. Delcourt said, “The Delcourt Group is opening a new page in its history by entering into exclusive negotiations with the Editis Group. This new home port would be both reassuring in its scope and […]