Penguin Random House is one of the largest publishing companies in the world and they have just confirmed that they are going to buy Simon & Schuster for $2.175 billion in cash. The deal is subject to regulatory approval and if the deal closes, Simon & Schuster will continue to run as a separate publishing unit. Jonathan Karp will remain as president and CEO and Dennis … [Read more...] about Penguin Random House buys Simon & Schuster
Business News
Penguin Random House, Hachette and Harpercollins most likely to buy S&S
Penguin Random House, Hachette and Harpercollins are the three leading bidders to purchase Simon and Schuster, the 3rd largest publisher in the world. The New York Times is reporting that the sale price is $1.7 billion and the bids must be officially made by Thanksgiving and the deal should be announced a few days later.Simon and Schuster's revenue rose 20% last quarter on … [Read more...] about Penguin Random House, Hachette and Harpercollins most likely to buy S&S
Hachette Book Sales Increase by 19.2% in the US in Q3 2020
Hachette global publishing revenue was €704 million, up 6.3% from the same period last year. E-books as a proportion of total Lagardère Publishing revenue continued to grow, representing 9.9% in the third quarter of 2020 versus 7.8% in third-quarter 2019, while downloadable audiobooks represented 3.7% of revenue compared to 2.9% one year earlier.Business surged 19.2% in the … [Read more...] about Hachette Book Sales Increase by 19.2% in the US in Q3 2020
ByteDance is investing in ebooks
ByteDance is the parent company of Tik-Tok and they are trying to expand their business model into different verticales, such as enterprise software and distance learning. The company has just invested $170 million into China’s largest e-book readers and publishers, Zhangyue.Zhangyue operates an app where 170 million users read novels, magazines and anime and listen to … [Read more...] about ByteDance is investing in ebooks
E INK expects 2020 revenue to be its highest in 4 years
E INK e-paper displays are found on almost every single e-reader and digital note taking device on the market. Due to the global pandemic, there has been an increased demand for digital readers and e-notes. Hisense, iFlytek, iReader, Kobo, Onyx Boox and a myriad of other vendors have been releasing a bunch of new devices all year long. E INK has just announced that their 2020 … [Read more...] about E INK expects 2020 revenue to be its highest in 4 years
Scholastic sales were down 7% in the past 3 months
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
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
