Scholastic has reported that over the course of the past three months, revenue was $215.2 million, a decrease of 7% compared to $232.6 million in the first quarter of 2020. The decline in revenue was due to the school distribution channels due to COVID-impacted delays in school openings, as well as a shift in the timing of the release, as planned, of new titles in the popular … [Read more...] about Scholastic sales were down 7% in the past 3 months
Business News
John Wiley & Sons experiences a digital boom
John Wiley and Sons have experienced a big profit in the past quarter, due to COVID and more people buying research and online access. Digital and online products offset continued declines in print revenue, leading to a 2% increase in sales. Revenue was $431.3 million in the quarter ended July 31, 2020, compared to $423.5 million in last year’s first quarter, total profit was … [Read more...] about John Wiley & Sons experiences a digital boom
Bertelsmann is considering a bid for Simon & Schuster
Bertelsmann is the parent company of Penguin Random House, and this year they own 100% of the company, after they bought out the stake Pearson had in it. Penguin Random House is responsible for almost half of all books published in the world, on a yearly basis. When Viacom and CBS merged, in late 2019, the company said that Simon & Schuster was “not a core asset. It is not … [Read more...] about Bertelsmann is considering a bid for Simon & Schuster
Audiobook and ebook sales are up 15% at Penguin Random House
In the first six months of 2020, Penguin Random House announced that total revenue fell 8.9% and the publisher generated €7.85 billion Overall profit fell to €488 million from €502 million in the first six months of 2019. The pandemic was one of the reasons why book sales fell, globally. The publishers investment in digital, was one of the big reasons why the loss wasn't … [Read more...] about Audiobook and ebook sales are up 15% at Penguin Random House
Hummingbird Digital has been sold to 360 Media
Hummingbird is not a household name, but it was a service that allowed users to sell audiobooks and ebooks in their online store and earn a commission whenever something was sold. If you wanted to do business with the company, you had to be a US resident. Hummingbird was sold to 360 Media Direct, the marketing and fulfillment agency with roots in the magazine publishing world. … [Read more...] about Hummingbird Digital has been sold to 360 Media
Amazon is under fire from various publisher associations
The Association of American Publishers, Authors Guild and American Booksellers association have jointly written a letter to House of Representatives’ Antitrust Subcommittee about the power that Amazon represents to publishers and authors. It said “a few tech platforms in the digital marketplace” wield “extraordinary leverage over their competitors, suppliers, customers, the … [Read more...] about Amazon is under fire from various publisher associations
Scribd vows to cleanup SlideShare piracy
Linkedin Slideshare is a hotbed of piracy, there are thousands of ebooks available on the platform, in a myriad of formats. The repository for documents has been around for 14 years and so far, Linkedin has been ambivalent to the growing epidemic. Over the next several months, Scribd will be integrating their BookID system into the SlideShare platform to scan all uploads for … [Read more...] about Scribd vows to cleanup SlideShare piracy
HarperCollins ebook sales are up 26%
HarperCollins has just announced their recent financial results that cover the period for April, May and June of 2020. Full year revenues were $88m down to $1.676bn from $1.754bn the previous year. The revenue declines were partially blamed on higher sales the previous year of titles by Rachel Hollis, Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave by Joanna … [Read more...] about HarperCollins ebook sales are up 26%
Amazon increases online sales by 48% in the past 3 months
Amazon has just reported in the 2nd quarter of 2020 (April, May, June) that online ordering has increased by 48% and generated $45.9 billion. Sales through third-party sellers rose even more, soaring 52%, to $18.2 billion. Since many stores were closed during the peak of the global pandemic, it makes sense more people were buying things online and Amazon seems to be the clear … [Read more...] about Amazon increases online sales by 48% in the past 3 months
McGraw-Hill Digital Sales are up 18%
McGraw-Hill and Cengage terminated their planned merger this week, but it might be for the best. McGraw-Hill just released their financial results for the first three months of 2020 and sales were up 13% compared to the same period in 2019 with billings from digital products up more than 18%. The company generated $1.7 billion dollars total.Notably, this successful quarter … [Read more...] about McGraw-Hill Digital Sales are up 18%
SID Display Week is postponed to August
SID Display Week was supposed to occur on Sunday June 7th and the organizers have postponed the event until August 2-7, 2020, at the San Jose Convention Center. It remains to be seen if the pandemic will push back the event even further or if it will be cancelled all together like many of the other events, such as Book Expo America.Dr. Helge Seetzen, the President, Society … [Read more...] about SID Display Week is postponed to August
