Today Random House announced its earnings for the first half of 2012 and profits have increased by over 20%. The publisher posted a 64% increase in operating profit to $142 million and the 20% increase equated to almost $1.2 billion. This is partly due to mega successful properties, such as 50 Shades of Grey. The titillating trilogy sold more than 30 million copies between March and June, with sales evenly divided between the trade paperback and ebook editions. The Social Network producers Michael De Luca and Dana Brunetti are producing the big-screen adaptation of Fifty Shades of Grey, the first book in the trilogy, for Universal Pictures and Focus Features.
50 Shades of Grey is not the only Random House property that has dramatically enhanced its growth. Other successful ebooks, such as George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series, John Grisham’s Calico Joe, Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl, and Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax.
Going forward, Random House is intending on international expansion to fuel further growth and is betting on Asia and South America. Random House’s parent company Bertelsmann recently opened new corporate centers in India and Brazil. With rumors of Kobo, Amazon, and other major booksellers poised to enter the country this year and with the upcoming holiday season, the future looks bright.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.