Nielsen Bookscan published top ten bestseller lists across a number of disciplines, including print fiction, print non-fiction, and print children’s/YA (Bookscan, of course, still does not measure ebook sales, and accounts for somewhere in the vicinity of 75 percent of print sales, excluding Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and other outlets.) Please note the lists do not include sales figures, and that they track data from January 3 through December 11. (A Nielsen spokesperson told us that complete year-end sales data will be available after January 4.) These lists also reflect Nielsen BookScan’s practice of listing bestsellers by individual editions/ISBNs, rather than […]
Briefs: Digital Accounted for 11 Percent of Random UK Overall Sales; Foyles Profits Up; And More
Random House UK chair and chief executive Gail Rebuck‘s annual letter to staff also went out Tuesday (too late for our dispatch) in which she revealed that ebook sales accounted for 11 percent of the group’s overall sales, and that 2011 would be regarded as a “time of significant digital-led change.” Forecasting 2012 Rebuck said that “increasingly, direct consumer engagement will play a pivotal role in our campaigns as online discoverability and recommendation become ever more crucial to the future success of our books.” Bookseller Foyles reported annual revenues of £22.8m for the year ending June 30, down slightly from […]
Unsecured Borders Creditors to Get Close to 10 Cents on Dollar As Liquidation Plan Approved
Federal bankruptcy court put its official stamp on the end of Borders, as the chain’s liquidation plan was approved by Judge Martin Glenn on Tuesday. Approximately 98 percent of creditors holding $211.5 million in debt voted to approve the plan. As previously reported, unsecured creditors owed between $812 million and $850 million will receive 4 to 10 cents on the dollar, but court papers indicate that recovery may be in the “higher end of the range,” with Borders lawyer Andrew Glenn stipulating in court that percentage may be even higher still, according to Bloomberg. In addition, Borders got the go-ahead to […]
eNews: Chabon Criticizes Standard eBook Royalty As Open Road Publishes His Backlist; New Cookbook Apps;and More
Open Road Integrated Media will publish five backlist titles by Michael Chabon starting today, including novels THE MYSTERIES OF PITTSBURGH and THE WONDER BOYS. In an interview with the AP Chabon called the 50 percent royalty Open Road offered for the books “fair and generous” while took issue with industry standard (which the AP said was “around 25 percent” but which we take to mean 25 percent of net proceeds) for ebook royalties as offered by current publisher HarperCollins and past publisher Random House, which will publish the ebook edition of THE ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER AND CLAY next June. “I […]
People, Etc.
Bonnier will move operations for children’s illustrated reference publisher Weldon Owen from Sydney, Australia to London early in 2012 as part of its consolidation with Hot Key Books, whose managing director Sarah Odedina will also oversee Weldon Owen. Six or seven new staffers will join the merged company on the editorial, production and design side; rights staffers are already based in London. Bonnier ceo Richard Johnson explained in a statement that the move owed to “a significant part of Weldon Owen’s market being in Europe and with the high Australian dollar to the US dollar we feel that a move […]
Random House CEO Dohle Highlights “Another Successful Year” For the Company
Year-end letter time continues with Random House ceo Markus Dohle’s missive to staff, in which he highlights “another successful year” for the company at a time of “enduring change and challenges for our industry.” He points to a culture and organization that’s more “collaborative, team-oriented, flexible, efficient, and agile” and allows Random House staffers to implement strategies more effectively. “In short, we aren’t reacting to change, we are driving it.” Dohle called Random House’s continuing success “all the more impressive in light of the prevailing weak economy.” He highlighted “hundreds” of bestsellers in the US, UK, Germany, and Spain including […]