The Idea Logical Company and Market Partners International recently conducted an anonymous, invitation-only survey of U.S. literary agents on the subject of e-book royalties, and many chose to comment on each question.* 135 agents took the survey. The findings—along with the reactions of seven publishing CEOs, who often questioned the agents’ contentions—will be presented by…Continue Reading
PEOPLE As was anticipated, Marie Toulantis has resigned from her position as CEO of BarnesandNoble.com. She had been with the company since 2002 and will continue to serve as a consultant. Tom Burke, VP E-Commerce, and Kevin Frain, CFO, have temporarily assumed her duties. They report to Barnes & Noble CEO Steve Riggio. Marjorie Braman,…Continue Reading
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Tagged A. M. Homes, ABPA, Algonquin, Alison Indrisano, Allison Malec, Alyson Grubard, American Book Producers Association, Anchor Yale Bible Series, Anita Alberse, Anna Crowe, Assouline Publishing, Atria, Baker & Taylor, Bantam Dell, BarnesandNoble.com, Basic Books, Bill Frucht, Birdsong, BISG, Black Dog & Leventhal, Bloomsbury, Brooklyn Book Festival, Cambridge University Press, Cecily von Ziegesar, Chuck Dresner, Chuck Klosterman, Clarkson Potter, CLMP, Columbia Business School, Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, Craig Mandeville, Crown, CUP, Daily Telegraph, DailyLit, Dan Brown, Dan Farley, David Hogue, Debbie Derevjanik, Diane von Furstenberg, Dominique Raccah, Donna Passannante, Donya Dickerson, Dorothy Allison, Elizabeth Nunez, Elizabeth Van Doren, Emmanuel Shalit, Eric Carle, Erica Smith, ETS, First Book, ForeWord Magazine, Frank Totaro, General Society of Mechanics and Tradesmen, Goddard Riverside, HarperCollins, HarperEntertainment, Harry Abrams, Harry N. Abrams, Harvard Business School, Henry Holt, Hervé de La Martinière, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Idea Logical Company, Independent and Small Press Book Fair, J. K. Rowling, J. P. Leventhal, J. R. R. Tolkien, James Redfield, Jane Hope Hastings Philanthropic Trust, Jean Srnecz, Jennifer Barth, Jimmy Breslin, Joan Didion, Joel Turner, Johanna Bowman, John Collins, John Lindsay, Jonathan Lethem, La Martinière Publishing Group, Laura Geringer, Levy Home Entertainment, Lindsay Orman, Liz Hartman, M. Scott Peck, Madison Square Garden, Marian Brown, Marian Brown PR, Marie Toulantis, Marjorie Braman, Mary Albi, Mary Choteborsky, McGraw-Hill, Mike Shatzkin, Morrow, Nathaniel Marunas, National Geographic, New York Center for Independent Publishing, Nicholas Brealey, Nielsen, NYCIP, OUP, Oxford University Press, Pete Hamill, Pocket Books, Potter Craft, Prometric, Rebecca Behan, Richard Price, Rodale, Russell Banks, Sarah Durand, Sebastian Faulks, Sourcebooks, St. Martin's, Steve Faber, Steve Riggio, Susan Danziger, Terry Deal, The Celestine Prophecy, The Road Less Traveled, The Very Hungry Caterpillar, Tina Constable, Tom Burke, Tom Stouras, Trish O'Hare, Weinstein Company, Wendy Lazear, Yale Club, Yale Divinity School, Yale University Press
Publishers and Booksellers Re-Assess Their Backlists, Stocking Deeper, While Printing Less, Plus: Looking Beyond the Shelf Backlist has always been a cash cow for those willing to milk it. Publishers have long tried enticing booksellers with annual promotions, Buy-Now-Pay-Later deals, Just In Time Inventory and the like – all with the hope of boosting their…Continue Reading
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Tagged Abebooks.com, Above the Treeline, Amazon, Anthony Ziccardi, Bill Rusin, Bowker, Carlo De Vito, CBA, Chamberlain, Chris Morrow, City Lights, Daniel Goldin, Google, HarperCollins, Harry Schwartz, Harry Schwartz Bookstores, Hot Shots, Idea Logical Company, Ingram, John Rubin, Josh Marwell, Lightning, Long Tail, Matty Goldberg, Maureen Donnelly, Mike Shatzkin, Northshire, Northshire Books, Norton, Patrick Nolan, Paul Yamazaki, Penguin, Perseus, Powell's, R.J. Julia, Random House, Richard Davies, Roxanne Coady, Running Press, S&S, Signet Classics, Tattered Cover, The Bluest Eye, The Da Vinci Code, The Kite Runner, The Secret Life of Bees, The Stone Diaries, Thomas Nelson, Tyndale, Wiley, WW Norton, Zondervan
Specialty Distributors Dominate Markets Publishers Can’t Touch Last month’s profile of distributors into the traditional book market only revealed the tip of the sales iceberg, as publishers expand their special sales departments in hopes of reaching a broader (read non-bookstore) array of consumers. Enter the specialty distributor. In a retail landscape where books are accessories…Continue Reading
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Tagged Bass Pro, Booklegger, Cabela's, Carrie Kilmer, CHP, Chronicle, Contemporary Specialty, Copeland, Copeland Sports, Creative Homeowner, Cy de Cosse, Dick's, Elaine Panagides, Elliott Mackey, Gander Mountain, Gaylan, Global Sports, HDA, Idea Logical Company, Ingram, Kevin Haas, Libby Bonomolo, Media Solutions, Meredith, Michael Kirschwehm, Mike Hejny, Mike Shatzkin, Modell's, Motor Books International (MBI), National Plan Service, Quayside, Robert Kraut, Rodale, Ron Davis, Select, SLS, Soho, South Beach Diet, Sports Chalet, Sterling, Sunset, Time Media, Time Media Direct, Wine Appreciation Guild
PEOPLE Following the doldrums of December, January brought some major moves, including Michael Jacobs’ sortie from Scholastic, and David Steinberger’s installation as the President and CEO of the Perseus Books Group. Movement is everywhere: Random House has combined its two separate retail sales forces into a single unit, resulting in the departure of at least…Continue Reading
Posted in Book View •
Tagged AAP, Alan Trask, Alex Holtz, Amadeus Press, Avery Books, Baker & Taylor, Barbara O'Shea, Barron's, Bebe Buell, Berkley, BISG, Bob Levine, Books for a Better Life, Bowker, Brands-to-Books, Candice Chaplin, Carl Andress, Carlos Eire, Carol Roeder, Caroline White, Cause Celeb, Chris Waters, Crown, David Cassidy, David Kirkpatrick, David Steinberger, Dominique Raccah, Ed Lenk, Eric Kettunen, Gerry Helferich, Gotham, HarperCollins, Hudson Street Press, Hyperion, Idea Logical Company, Intervisual, James Fitzgerald, Jay Cosgrove, Jean Sznecz, Jeremy P. Tarcher, Joel Fotinos, John Cerullo, Jonathan Nowell, Judy Blume, Kate Stark, Kathleen Spinelli, Kim Goldstein, King Hill, Larry Bullock, Laureen Rowland, Laurie Bernstein, Lloyd Jassin, M. Evans, Marianne Faithfull, Megan Newman, Meredith Vieira, Michael Burkin, Michael Cairns, Michael Jacobs, Michael Lynton, Michael Musto, Michele Martin, Mike Campbell, Mike Shatzkin, Miriam Bass, Modern Publishing, Nancy Calbirer, National Book Foundation, NBN, Nielsen BookData, Oakley Hall, Other Press, P.J. Dempsey, Pamela Des Barres, Paul Harrington, Paul Kozlowski, Penguin, Perseus Books Group, PGW, Poets & Writers, Polly Horvath, powerHouse, Publishers Group West, Puffin, Random House, Robert Allen, Rodale, Ruth Liebmann, S&S Children's, Scholastic, Sharon Olds, Shirley Hazzard, Sid Albert, Small Press Center, Sony Pictures, Sourcebooks, Susan Allison, Susan Golomb, Susan Wyler, Ted Hill, Teresa Nicholas, The New York Public Library, Tom Lovett, Tracy Tang, Viking Penguin, VikingStudio, Vista, Viz, Wiley
PT’s Savvy Commentators Ponder the Fallout from Another Year in Publishing As we surveyed the smoking turf from another twelve months in the book business, it struck us that this year’s pinnacles and pratfalls were decidedly in the eye of the beholder. We asked a number of savvy publishing personalities to offer their take on…Continue Reading
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Tagged AMS, Andrews McMeel, AOL, Avalon Publishing Group, Bertelsmann, BookScan, Borders, Brown, Charlie Winton, Frank Pearl, Glamour, HarperCollins, Houghton Mifflin, Idea Logical Company, Jack McKeown, Jack Shoemaker, Joe Spieler, Journals, Karen Jenkins Holt, Kurt Cobain, Little, Michael Cader, Michael Crichton, Michael Wolff, Mike Bryan, Mike Shatzkin, New York Observer, Pantheon, Pat Strachan, Perseus Books Group, PGW, Prey, Publishers Lunch, Random House, Reader's Digest, Reiman Publications, Riverhead, Running Press, Sara Nelson, Scholastic, Shoemaker & Hoard, Simon & Schuster, Stephen King, The Spieler Agency, View From A Buick 8, Vivendi
Despite being ritually deemed “the bane of the publishing industry” and “one of the costliest aspects of the business,” the problem of book returns remains an estimated $7 billion thorn in the industry’s side. Last year, BISG figures show, the average adult trade hardcover return rate was 37.5%, up 3% from the year before. Publishing’s…Continue Reading
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Tagged Anant Mahale, Barnes & Noble, BISG, BN.com, Bookmaster, BookScan, Borders, Columbia University Press, i2 Technologies, Idea Logical Company, Manugistics, Mike Shatzkin, Scholastic, TMS
Mike Shatzkin of the Idea Logical Company took a retro tack at the Seybold Seminars last month as he rolled out “a brand new opportunity to get more sales and lower the returns of physical books.” We offer a brief excerpt of his remarks. Here’s the fact most publishers and chain booksellers seem to ignore:…Continue Reading
BookExpo America Returns to Gotham, Pondering Its ‘Donut Problem’ You may as well cue up the ticker tape. Because when BookExpo America lands in New York this May after a decade-long hiatus, the annual book industry trade show “will be celebrating its return to the publishing capital of the world,” in the neon-lit words of…Continue Reading
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Tagged Al Gore, Alison Lazarus, Beacon Press, Book Sense, BookExpo America, Books-A-Million, Carl Lennertz, CDS, Dominique Raccah, Frankfurt Book Fair, get Caught Reading, Greg Topalian, Helene Atwan, Holtabrinck, Idea Logical Company, Leadership, Library Hotel, London Book Fair, Market Partners, Michael Cader, Mike Shatzkin, Ornella Robbiati, Penguin Putnam, Publishers Lunch, Random House, Reed Exhibitions, Rock Bottom Remainders, Rudy Giuliani, Sonzogno, Sourcebooks, St. Martin's, Steve Black, Talk Miramax
