HarperCollins has reached an agreement to sell its English language e-books in China through a local online retailer, JD.com and China National Publications Import. While HarperCollins has sold e-books in China for years, this is the first time the publisher has sold through a local Chinese retailer.
The deal will launch with about 800 backlist titles on JD.com, including such bestsellers as Divergent by Veronica Roth and The Alchemist by Paul Coelho. Backlist titles include works from such authors as Neil Gaiman, Lemony Snicket, C.S. Lewis and Beverly Cleary. CNPIE will handle importing the e-books and new titles will be added in the coming months. .
Haifeng Yang, head of books, audios and videos at JD.com said “The e-book market in China is poised for tremendous growth. We’re excited to bring great content from HarperCollins to our readers.”
“JD.com has been a key partner in selling HarperCollins print books in China for years and we are happy to work with them on our e-book business,” said Chantal Restivo-Alessi, chief digital officer at HarperCollins. “By expanding our international e-book distribution we’re opening up a new market for our authors’ works.”
