It took Judge Denny Chin thirteen months to consider and reject the Google Books Settlement, but in court Tuesday he indicated that he will not let the case drag on forever. The parties have had only four months to start all over, but Chin expressed some pragmatism is noting, “I have a sense that we’ll come back here in September and you’ll just want more time,” noting that “Google has all but said they would not accept an opt-in deal.” (The company already has an opt-in program that exists outside of the settlement.) Absent being “resolved or close to resolved […]
Legal
More eNews, Off the Beaten Path: Muhammed Ali Sues Kobo; An Author’s eFirst Serial; Chinese Authors Complain to Apple; and More
Muhammad Ali Enterprises has sued Kobo in a New York Federal Court, saying the company used the apparently-trademarked “Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee” phrase in an ereader ad without permission. Bloomberg Author Keith Devlin has self-published electronically a section that had been cut from his just-released book THE MAN OF NUMBERS, under the title Leonardo & Steve: The Young Genius Who Beat Apple to Market by 800 Years. Priced at $2.99, the self-published ebook was issued more or less simultaneously with the full title from Bloomsbury, packaged with the first chapter from the book itself. Agent Ted […]
Borders Assures Landlords That The Rush To Sell is The Fault of Lenders
Though the myriad of objections filed by landlords by Monday afternoon’s deadline over Borders’ prospective sale to Najafi was par for the course, Borders filed their own response motion in bankruptcy court late Tuesday. In it they say the accelerated sale process owes to GE Capital’s stipulation under the amended financing agreement that the company must find a buyer by July 29 – and have the sale approved by July 22 — lest they default. “The sale simply cannot take place in the timeframe required if there are any further delays in the schedule,” Borders stated. “If the sale does […]
Borders Has Preliminary Sale Agreement with Najafi
Borders announced Thursday night it has entered into an asset purchase agreement with Najafi Companies’ Direct Brands unit, which it will submit to the bankruptcy court as a stalking horse bid as part of a court-supervised auction of the bookseller. “Purchase” is an interesting term (“take” might be another one), since Najafi would put up $215.1 million for “substantially all of the company’s assets,” acquiring inventory potentially worth far more than that, along with assuming $220 million in liabilities. It’s not clear how many locations Najafi intends to keep operating–but there is an agreement in place already with Hilco and […]
Judge Supports CIA’s Pre-Pub Review; Birther Authors Sue Over Esquire Satire
Alexandria, VA US District Judge Gerald Lee has firmly supported the CIA’s pre-publication review process for books by agency employees and former employees–including their common practice of taking their own sweet time in commenting on manuscripts. Judge Lee ruled against pseudonymous author Ishmael Jones and his book THE HUMAN FACTOR: Inside the CIA’s Dysfunctional Intelligence Culture from Encounter Books. Jones published his book without the agency’s permission, after being denied approval on the first version of his manuscript, and receiving only partial approval for a revised version. Attorney Laurin Mills had asserted that the CIA breached the pre-publication review agreement […]
Briefs: Pottermore Details Leaked; BN eBook Market Share; Indies Charging For Events, Again; And More
The Times UK claims they received an “official marketing memo” by mistake with details about JK Rowling’s Pottermore website, which officially launches Thursday at 7 AM EDT at an event at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London. According to the story, Pottermore is “a sophisticated online game that contains clues to prizes that are hidden in the real world. These are an unstated number of magic wands secreted in Britain and America, and possibly other countries.” The Times notes it’s still not clear whether the treasure hunt is Pottermore itself, or a marketing ploy, or if the “leak” is […]