As negotiations reportedly continue between multiple publishers and the Department of Justice over possible modifications to the agency model for ebook sales, the lawsuit seeking class-action status in New York’s Southern District Court continues, with three of the plaintiffs filing responses to the allegations earlier this month. Apple, filing on March 2, took issue with the idea of any conspiracy between it and publishers, saying the original complaint “implausibly suggests Apple conspired with the publishers to address economic issues it was not facing, and coordinated actions it did not participate in.” That’s because, when the agency model was implemented in […]
Legal
Dorchester’s Office Closed, Assets To Be Auctioned After Owner Forecloses
Dorchester Publishing, plagued by financial troubles for years and having recently divested itself of its remaining editorial staff, appears to be marching towards an ignoble end after more than 40 years in business. In a twist worthy of Dorchester’s tortured road to collapse, the publisher’s owner is the one foreclosing, on a personal basis, against the company itself, and will collect the proceeds from the sale of at least some of its property–raising questions about whether any assets will remain to pay creditors. On February 28, John Backe filed a notice of foreclosure after failing to collect on an outstanding […]
Justice Department Said to Threaten Suit Over Agency eBook Pricing
The Wall Street Journal says that the Justice Department’s lengthy investigation of the agency model for ebook pricing has escalated, with the government threatening to sue the “Agency Five” publishers and Apple “for allegedly colluding to raise the price of electronic books, according to people familiar with the matter.” The paper says that “some but not all” of the publishers involved have held settlement talks with Justice. Those same people said “the Justice Department believes that Apple and the publishers acted in concert to raise prices across the industry, and is prepared to sue them for violating federal antitrust laws.” […]
In Upholding Decision, Appellate Court Agrees Lampack Can’t Claim Commission On Grimes Option Book
On March 1, the Appellate Division of New York State Supreme Court unanimously upheld a 2010 court decision that ruled the Peter Lampack Agency could not collect commissions on a novel by former client Martha Grimes that was an option book on a prior agreement, but whose terms were agreed upon with her publisher Penguin under a separate contract. (For more information on the original case, click here; Grimes and Penguin also recently settled a related suit with respect to legal fees and unpaid royalties as well.) The court said the contracts at issue in the case between Grimes and […]
Paramount Sues to Block Forthcoming Godfather Prequel
Paramount has filed suit in Manhattan Federal Court against the Mario Puzo estate, seeking an injunction blocking publication of the Godfather prequel THE FAMILY CORLEONE, scheduled for a May 8 release (and currently circulating in galley form). The studio alleges “infringement of copyright and trademark interests,” while acknowledging a standing disagreement with the estate over the right to publish additional Godfather books. The new book, by Ed Falco, is promoted as “based on pages extracted from Mario Puzo’s Godfather screenplays.” Sophie Cottrell at Hachette Book Groug declined to comment on the suit, and said that “Ed Falco’s The Family Corleone […]
Open Road Replies to Harper Lawsuit, As Author Asks to Intervene As Co-Defendant
In a terse reply filed on in the Manhattan District Court Thursday via attorneys Boni & Zack, Open Road has answered HarperCollins’ claims that their ebook of Jean Craighead George’s JULIE OF THE WOLVES infringes Harper’s rights under copyright law. The essence of their reply is that “Open Road admits that the contract grants HarperCollins the right to publish Julie of the Wolves ‘in book form,’ but denies that such grant encompasses the right to publish the work as an e-book.” They deny that “HarperCollins ever intended to publish Julie of the Wolves as an e-book, and it is denied […]