Sterling, Duncan Baird Partner
Sterling Publishing has teamed up with U.K. publisher/ packager Duncan Baird Publishers to publish and distribute Baird titles in North America. Under the agreement, Sterling will publish 30 titles per year under the Duncan Baird Publishers imprint and 15 under the Watkins imprint. The two lists will launch next fall. Baird will continue to do packaging for key U.S. clients, including Chronicle Books and Oxford University Press.
Abebooks Acquires Bookfinder
Abebooks.com has acquired Bookfinder.com, the online price comparison site for books. Abebooks COO Boris Wertz said Bookfinder will remain an unbiased price comparison site, despite its new ownership by one of the largest online sellers of used books. Bookfinder will remain in Berkeley, Calif., under the direction of cofounders Anirvan Chatterjee and Charlie Hsu.
Bigger Loss at AMS
In its latest financial update, Advanced Marketing Services reported that its net loss for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2005, will be higher than previously reported. The company said the loss is now expected to be in the 96 cents to $1.06 per share range, up from 73 cents to 83 cents. The higher loss was attributed to higher than expected returns, due in part to a slowdown in the sale of bestsellers. The company stressed that much of the loss in fiscal '05 was due to costs associated with the ongoing investigations into its advertising accounting practices and the consolidation of its distribution and returns centers. It said those expenses will be substantially less in fiscal 2006.
Jurjevics Leaving Soho
Soho Press president, publisher and cofounder Juris Jurjevics will step down from his day-to-day roles at the company at the end of the year. Jurjevics, who sold his first novel, The Trudeau Vector, to Viking last year, will pursue his own writing and hold the title of editor-at-large at Soho. Taking over as president and publisher is the house's former v-p and cofounder, Laura Hruska.
Bergen Wins Giller
David Bergen has won Canada's top fiction award, the Giller Prize, for his novel The Time in Between, about a former American soldier who returns to Vietnam more than 25 years after the war. Published in August by McClelland & Stewart in Canada, The Time in Between will be published in the U.S. next month by Random House.
New Imprint From North Atlantic Books
North Atlantic Books & Frog Ltd. has formed a new imprint dedicated exclusively to martial arts. Blue Snake will launch in January 2006 with Anastasia McGhee as project editor, and will include training manuals, histories and biographies.
OUP Buys Oceana
Oxford University Press has acquired the assets of legal publisher Oceana Publications for an undisclosed price. The deal includes about 100 products, including looseleaf titles, monographs and online products. Oceana will continue to be based in Dobbs Ferry, N.Y., although company president and owner David Cohen will no longer be involved with the publisher. Andy Redman, director of OUP's law publishing division, will oversee Oceana.
Rosen Moves To Abrams
David Rosen, former v-p, editorial group director for community book clubs at Bookspan, is moving to Abrams after being named to the newly created position of v-p, editorial director for both Abrams and the new Abrams Image imprint. He'll start December 12 and report to Abrams CEO Michael Jacobs. He'll also work closely with Abrams editor-in-chief Eric Himmel and with Howard Reeves, publisher of Abrams Books for Young Readers, the Amulet imprint and Abrams Image.
Publishing Up at Marvel
Publishing was the one bright spot for Marvel in the third quarter that ended September 30. While sales in the licensing and toy divisions tumbled, publishing revenue rose 14%, to $25.8 million, and operating income increased 17%, to $11 million. Higher sales of trade paperbacks to bookstores and comics stores led the increase. For the first nine months of the year, earnings rose 8%, to $27.7 million, on an 8% sales increase, to $69.1 million.
Bang-up Quarter for Audible
Audible reported revenue of $16.8 million for the third quarter, up 81% over 2004. The company had a net loss of $189,000, compared to earnings of $483,884, due mainly to higher costs associated with getting new members. The company added 79,800 new customers in the quarter, including 61,900 AudibleListener members. In the quarter, sales through iTunes represented 14% of total revenue, and the company had a full quarter's sales from its new U.K. subsidiary.
Courier Results Rise
Total revenue at Courier Corp. rose 8%, to $227 million, while net income also rose 8%, to $22.1 million for the fiscal year ended Sept. 24. For the full year, book manufacturing sales rose 9%, to $193.6 million, but sales in the publishing group, which comprises Dover Publications and Research & Education Associates, fell 1%, to $40.3 million.
Dispute Over F&W
Abry Partners, the private investment group that bought F&W Publications earlier this year, has sued Providence Equity, claiming that the former owners of the publishing house misled them during due diligence. Abry wants to rescind the transaction or collect unspecified damages. Providence said it will defend itself.
Newspaper Manga
Looking to attract younger readers, the Los Angeles Times, the Denver Post and other newspapers will be running two original English-language manga as daily comic strips. The strips, which will begin in January, are based on Tokyopop's Van Von Hunter by Ron Kaulfersch and Mike Schwark; and on Peach Fuzz by Lindsay Chibos and Jared Hodges. Earlier this year, Cosmopolitan began running the manga strip The Adventures of CG by Svetlana Chmakova, also a Tokyopop author.
