EDC Drops Books on Amazon

Educational Development Corporation, publisher of Usborne and Kane Miller Books in the U.S., has announced that it will no longer sell any of its books on Amazon or to any entities that resell to Amazon. This follows a 2009 decision to stop selling the Kane Miller list via Amazon; now, by adding the Usborne line, it will include a full list of more than 1,500 titles.

Sterling Off Sales Block

The decision to pull Sterling Publishing off the sales block for the time being could be part of Barnes & Noble’s larger strategy about what it plans to do with its Nook and bookselling assets, industry insiders say. B&N had a few offers for Sterling, but the highest was for only about one-quarter of the $126 million the bookstore chain paid for the publishing company.

James Atlas Joins Amazon Publishing

James Atlas, founder of the independent publishing house Atlas & Co., has joined Amazon Publishing, and his indie house has stopped releasing frontlist titles. Atlas will publish a series of short biographies for Amazon Publishing. Atlas is a noted biographer and as a publisher he developed a reputation for releasing quality nonfiction.

Google to Reinstate Indie Affiliates

After notifying some independent bookseller Google eBook affiliates that they will be removed from the program as of March 15 and their links deactivated, Google is now working to reinstate all indie affiliates. A Google spokesperson told PW, “We did not intend to deactivate independent booksellers from the Google eBooks affiliate program. We apologize for any inconvenience.” The company expects to add back those affected soon.

Guild Motion Asks for Ruling On HathiTrust’s Defense

The Authors Guild is placing the question of fair use front and center in a motion filed February 28 that asks the judge hearing the HathiTrust lawsuit to issue a “partial judgment on the pleadings” and rule that the unauthorized digitization is in fact not protected by fair use. If Judge Baer decides to rule, he will make a decision based on the Guild’s original complaint and the HathiTrust’s answer. Even if he grants the motion, other parts of the case will move forward.

Grant to Head Severn House

Kate Lyall Grant has been named publisher of Severn House. Grant, who spent the past eight years at Simon & Schuster, will oversee Severn’s entire list.

Running Press And Comedy Central Partner

Running Press has formed a joint publishing program with Comedy Central to build on the cable network’s brands. Titles within the program will focus on new material from comedians as well as existing series and franchises. The contract runs through 2016, and Running Press looks to publish two to three titles per season.