In Friday’s Lunch we compared Borders’ presentation to publishers on Thursday as Groundhog Day–a repetition of the same basic plan they had been talking about since late December–and it also appears that there may not be a final decision on the bookseller’s fate until Groundhog Day itself, the rough deadline set by Borders. The WSJ adds the name of the law firm that is representing Borders in the restructuring talks (Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman), and provides an estimated amount for the new credit line under negotiation with GE and others: “$500 million or more.” That is considerably less than […]
Knopf Clarifies Lawrence Wright’s Upcoming Scientology Book
Numerous media reports have created a wave of confusion over author Lawrence Wright’s work-in-progress on the Church of Scientology and director and high-profile Scientology defector Paul Haggis. In a telephone interview on Friday, Wright’s longtime editor at Knopf, Ann Close, clarified several key points. Knopf purchased North American rights to the book from agent Andrew Wylie at The Wylie Agency in early October, prior to Frankfurt. But that sale was too late to be included in the agency’s Frankfurt catalog–which was the source for a Gawker post earlier this month, which claimed the book proposal was still being shopped, and […]
One Way to Sell eBooks from Bookstore Shelves
BTW has an interesting piece on how two stores, Green Apple Books in San Francisco and McLean and Eakin Booksellers in Petoskey, Michigan, are using their shelves to help promote and sell ebooks. They have created shelf-talkers with QR codes. “Customers can scan the square codes with their smartphones and go directly to the featured titles on the store’s IndieCommerce website.” Green Apple’s Pete Mulvihill says “we’ll put these all over the displays at the front of the store on any agency plan titles. If nothing else, we think it’ll lead to plenty of customer questions. And at best, we […]
With Lower Print Sales, AAP eBook Stats Comprise 9.3 Percent of November Sales
November ebook sales among the 12 publishers reporting to the AAP rose again, to $46.6 million, a $5.9 million gain over October, comprising $392 million for the monitored 11 months in 2010. eBooks accounted for 9.3 percent of all trade sales for the month (when you use proper math). That’s substantially higher than in October–mostly because net trade print sales were far lower in November ($452 million, versus $528 million in October). It is the highest single month of ebook sales so far in the AAP’s monitoring.
More on Google’s eBook Acquisition
There are a lot of stories out there with wild speculation about how Google might use the newly-acquired eBook Technologies to expand their ebook program. This piece at Kindle Review provides some good factual detail on ETI’s assets, including their existing ereader devices, and their patents (for such systems as advertisements in ebooks). Separately, a Google spokesperson provided us with a slightly expanded explanatory statement: “We believe that ETI can help us provide users with a richer digital reading experience on tablets and other emerging hand-held devices. For example, ETI’s Pub renderer supports pagination of complex layouts. We are excited […]
Borders Lays Off Another 15 Staffers
As publishers met with Borders executives yesterday afternoon to discuss restructuring options and credit negotiation agreements, the company announced today that another 15 staffers have been let go. Spokesperson Mary Davis issued a statement that, “As part of its brand transformation process, which includes enhanced cost efficiencies measures, Borders Group today eliminated 15 positions within its field organization. The number includes 9 regional merchandising manager, four event marketing manager and two district manager positions. “The affected employees are being offered, in some cases, an alternative position, while the rest of the employees will receive severance in accordance with company policy. […]