November 21, 2012
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| Comps Fall at Books-A-Million, But Sales Rise 11% Books-A-Million once again reported quarterly results that benefited from the addition of over 40 former Borders stores last fall. For the third quarter ended October 27, sales rose 11%, to $104.7 million, despite a 3.6% decline in comparable store sales. Net loss from continuing operations for the third quarter was $2.8 million, down from a loss of $3.8 million in the comparable period in 2011. more »  Citing lower than expected sales in its Educational Technology and Services segment, as well as in its book fair and book club businesses, Scholastic significantly cut its earnings estimate for the fiscal year ending next May. While the projection for revenue has been cut to $1.8 billion to $1.9 billion from early projections of $1.9 billion to $2.0 billion, the earnings per share estimate was slashed to a range of $1.40 to $1.60 per diluted share from $2.20 to $2.40 per diluted share. more » ADVERTISEMENT  Flush with cash and in an apparent buying mood ahead of splitting the company in two, News Corp is in preliminary talks with CBS about buying its Simon & Schuster subsidiary, according to the News Corp-owned Wall Street Journal. Although it is far from certain that a deal will get done, a combination of HarperCollins and S&S would form the second largest trade house after the merged Penguin Random House. more »  D&M Publishers' Bankruptcy Protection Extended Vancouver-based D&M Publishers, which filed for bankruptcy protection last month, has received a 45-day extension from the Supreme Court of British Columbia. Its creditor protection has now been extended until January. 4, 2013. The company, which includes Douglas & McIntyre and Greystone Books, continues to operate while working with a trustee, the Bowra Group, to find an investor or purchaser for its assets. The Bowra Group is accepting offers until 2 p.m. (PST) November 26. more » With the acting publisher of Rodale Books, Steve Perrine, leaving the company to start a new venture with David Zinczenko (who was editor-in-chief of Rodale-owned magazine Men's Health), as the New York Post reported, the books division is in need of new leadership. A Rodale spokesperson confirmed that the hunt is on for a new head of the books division and that, in the interim, associate publisher Beth Lamb, along with editorial director Anne Egan, will be managing the group. more » The J.R.R. Tolkien estate and Tolkien's master publisher HarperCollins have filed an $80 million lawsuit in the U.S. Central District Court of California against Warner Bros., its subsidiary New Line, and Middle-earth Enterprises (a division of The Saul Zaentz Company) over copyright infringement and breach of contract. The suit focuses on digital licensing rights, specifically related to online slot machines. more »
 Industry Insiders Talk Young Adult Blockbusters At a recent panel called "Pop Culture Publishing: Young Adult Megahits," Susan Katz (l.), Rosemary Stimola (r.), Justin Chanda, and Megan Tingley examined the way in which blockbuster children's books like Harry Potter and Twilight have changed the industry – and how in some respects, those integral to discovering, publishing, and marketing such projects are still reeling. more » » ADVERTISEMENT  Fifteen of the nation's most prominent writers have agreed to participate in the American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression author auction that will take place March 27—29. The latest authors to join the proceedings are Judy Blume, Pete Hamill, Roger Rosenblatt, Michael Moore and Paul Zelinsky. more » »  Little, Brown Expands License with Hasbro Little, Brown Books for Young Readers is expanding its licensing relationship with Hasbro. It will launch a publishing program tied to My Little Pony, securing both print and electronic rights, and is adding more Transformers books to its roster; the new titles will start appearing in spring 2013. more » » Amazon Publishing is releasing a collection of never-before-published pieces by Kurt Vonnegut called Sucker's Portfolio. The e-title is available in the retailer/publisher's Kindle Serials store for $2.99. Since the title is part of the Serials program, consumers who purchase it will immediately receive the first story, out of seven, in the series. The final "episode" of the series will appear on consumers' e-readers on January 2, 2013. more » » After spending seven years writing her novel The Year of the Gadfly, released in May by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Jennifer Miller determined the best way to get her book into the hands of readers was to take it to the streets so she created her own version of a lemonade stand - the novelade stand and has averaged sales of 20 copies per appearance. more » »
Desert Island Picture Books: The NYT Motherlode blog asks readers for their picks. U.K. Bookstores Challenging Amazon: British booksellers are trying to take on Amazon over the retailer's supposed "tax dodging" in the U.K. Cairo No Longer a Publishing Mecca?: The Egypt Daily News looks at the diminishing position of the city as the center of the Egyptian publishing business. Shaffer On Ferriss: In a column in the HuffPo, Andrew Shaffer tackles Ferriss and the interest in 'The Four Hour Chef,' and what it may, or may not, signify for the industry. 'Times' Looks, Again, at Ferriss/Amazon : The paper of record does yet another piece on Tim Ferriss's publishing deal with Amazon, this one in the tech-focused Bits column.
PWxyz Blog PWStaff Amazon Kindle Turns 5 Amazon has released a list of its bestselling Kindle e-books to mark the device's fifth anniversary. more » Barbara Vey Put Me in the Story iPad app by Sourcebooks puts your child in the story. Tried it out on my great-niece, Addy, 3. more » Elizabeth Bluemle An Advent Calendar — in Books Brilliant idea from a new customer: a book a day under the tree. more » Rose Fox Which Future Are We In? How does past futurism influence the present? more » Adam Boretz Behind The Audio: Sinatra and Me Ol' Blue Eyes: The Audio Edition. more »
 Bank Square Back In BusinessWith the help of other New England booksellers and sales reps, Bank Square Books in Mystic, Ct., re-opened last Friday after flooding from Hurricane Sandy. As owner and NEIBA president Annie Philbrick wrote: "Whole new store. Looking good." A frugal New Englander, she found a home for some of the fixtures that were replaced with the soon-to-open Monte Cristo Bookshop in New London. |     | ||||||||||||||||||
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