Challenge to LBF
The Frankfurt Book Fair has created an event to compete with the London Book Fair, which is run by Reed Exhibitions. The Book Fair Earls Court will take place April 16—18 in central London, some six weeks after the LBF. Several major U.K. houses have backed the new event, along with agents. To accommodate the growth of the show, the LBF moved out of central London this year to the ExCel center in London's Docklands section. Though well attended, the fair generated complaints that ranged from its distance from central London to narrow aisles.
Myers Resigns
Bruce C. Myers has resigned as president and CEO of Advanced Marketing Services and has given up his seat on the board of directors. Myers was named to AMS's top spot in November 2004, succeeding Charles Tillinghast, who had stepped in six months before to replace Michael Nicita. AMS has been the subject of FBI and SEC investigations for more than two years. Loren C. Paulsen, executive v-p and a founder of the company, has assumed the responsibilities of president and CEO on an interim basis. AMS said it expected to name a new CEO "well known and highly regarded in the company's industry" soon.
Corwin Leaving Rodale
Tami Booth Corwin, who took over as president of the Rodale Book group last June, will step down from that position later this month. Corwin, who is expecting her second child, said she wants to devote more time to her family. Liz Perl, who joined Rodale last year as v-p and publisher, will serve as acting head of the book group.
Gains at HM
Total revenue at Houghton Mifflin rose 1.5% in the first quarter of 2006, to $134.4 million, and the operating loss was cut to $103.7 million from $118.8 million. While sales were up 18.5% in college and roughly flat in elhi, sales in the trade and reference group fell 7.4%, to $24.9 million, as the division was unable to match strong sales of Three Nights in August and Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close in 2005.
Harlequin Off
The strengthening of the Canadian dollar played havoc with Harlequin's first-quarter figures. Sales at the publisher fell 7.8%, to C$118.2 million ($106 million), and operating profit declined 38.6%, to C$15.1 million. Excluding currency fluctuations, earnings were flat. In North America, single-title unit sales were up in the first quarter, while series units were flat.
EDC Flat
Results were generally flat at Educational Development Corp. for the year ended February 28. Sales at the company rose to $31.8 million from $31.7 million, while net earnings held even at $2.4 million.
Viz, CN Ink Web Deal
Viz Media has joined with the Cartoon Network to launch Toonami Jetstream, a joint broadband venture offering high-speed Web access to streaming video of full-length episodes of Viz Media anime/manga properties. The service will debut on July 17. It's supported by advertising and free to consumers. Episodes of series like Naruto and Hikaru No Go will be available each week and archived.
Basic Gets Jacob
Perseus's Basic Books Group, which is still on the hunt for a new publisher, has hired Michele Jacob as director of publicity. Jacob, whose first official day on the job will be at BEA, takes on the position after a five-year stint at the Free Press, where she was most recently associate director of publicity.
Walker Joins Spiegel & Grau
The newly minted Spiegel & Grau imprint has named a marketing director: Meghan Walker. Walker, who will begin with S&G on May 15, had been promotion director for the Penguin Group. Walker's worked on campaigns for such books as Perfect Madness by Judith Warner and The MoneyBook for the Young, Fabulous andBroke by Suze Orman.
