French Library Wants In on Digitizing Books for the World The head of France’s national library Jean-Noel Jeanneney has offered remarks to both Le Monde and Le Figaro indicating concern that Google’s plans to digitize the collections of academic libraries presents “a risk of crushing domination by America in defining the idea that future generations have of the world.” In connection with the campaign, the library will put 22 French periodicals and newspapers going back to the 19th century online. According to Reuters, he wants the European Union to help with broader digitization and create it own search engines. All […]

Schedule Note I thought we were going to skip today, but then all these items popped up. Random Rings Mobile Content Player Random House’s investment subsidiary Random House Ventures has purchased “a significant minority stake” in VOCEL, which publishes branded content via mobile phones and has a patent pending on technology that “facilitates the transmission of templated text-based messages to cell phones.” Ventures president Richard Sarnoff says “Random House considers the mobile phone to be an important future platform for the delivery of information to consumers.” One VOCEL offering already in place with the Princeton Review sends users SAT questions […]

Schedule Note Tomorrow is Parent’s Day at school, followed immediately by the beginning of an excursion in honor of our former Presidents, so there will be no Lunch. Hershey to Random Jennifer Hershey will move to Random House as of March 14, where she will be editorial director (the same title she held at Putnam), reporting to Jonathan Karp. Over the last three years at Putnam, her acquisitions included novels by Jilliane P. Hoffman, Arturo Pérez-Reverte and Mark Mills, and nonfiction including Morgan Spurlock’s Don’t Eat This Book: Fast Food and the Supersizing of America. Karp comments in the announcement: […]

RH Sues Diddy For Dough Over Unwritten Manuscript Random House filed suit on Monday against music mogul Sean “P. Diddy” Combs, seeking the return of an advance paid by Ballantine in 1998 for an autobiography that the star never wrote. The house said in a statement, “We now have waited for over five years and have received neither the manuscript nor the return of the money we advanced Mr. Combs.” According to court papers, the publisher began notifying Diddy that he was in breach of contract and they wanted their $300,000 advance back as of early 2000. (Starting in 2001, […]

Please Note I have to run out of town tomorrow to visit a friend, so Lunch will be served closer to dinnertime. Gallagher Moves Up at Morrow Lisa Gallagher has been promoted to publisher for the William Morrow, HarperEntertainment and Eos imprints, reporting to HarperMorrow division president Michael Morrison. Morrow executive editor Claire Wachtel and cookbook editorial director Harriet Bell will continue to report directly to Morrison, as will Avon executive editor Carrie Feron and her “romance team.” Separately, Kim Sorrell will join Adams Media next month as key accounts manager, including responsibility for relationships with Baker & Taylor, Ingram, […]

Penguin Expands Revised Paperback The Penguin Group is officially rolling out their revised “premium” mass-market format among a number of lead titles, beginning this July with Maeve Binchy’s NIGHT OF RAIN AND STARS. The revision features such upgrades as larger type, more white space, better quality paper and a larger trim size that still fits standard racks. The format is priced at $9.99. Harlequin Adds Another Foreign Line Harlequin will launch a co-publishing partnership in Brazil with Record Publishing Group, beginning on April 1. The companies plan to issue 100 titles together in the first year. His Award Among the […]