The New York Rights Fair is the official name of a new event, planned for next spring, that will be the first trade and licensing show in the U.S. dedicated exclusively to the buying and selling of international rights as well as the distribution and licensing of content. The show, which will cover both adult and children’s content, was first announced at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in April.
The organizers of the Bologna Book Fair, BolognaFiere, are one of the backers of the New York Rights Fair along with Publishers Weekly and the Combined Book Exhibit.
The inaugural fair is set for May 30 – June 1, 2018, and will be held at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Manhattan. According to the organizers, the fair will offer a unique venue for U.S. publishers and agents to network with their global counterparts in the publishing capital of the world. The three-day event will cover rights sales negotiation and distribution of content across print, audio, TV, film, and digital channels.
“There is no more essential content marketplace than New York. The U.S. market can be extremely challenging for international publishers to navigate. A trade show dedicated to both adult and children’s rights and licensing, in an intimate setting, will enhance the current landscape of fairs focused on the global rights market,” said George Slowik, Jr., CEO, Publishers Weekly. Slowik added: “We anticipate that the New York Rights Fair will draw a broad international crowd to the U.S. and believe it is the perfect synergistic fair with BookExpo for people in the rights business.” The event is planned to coincide with BookExpo 2018.
"BolognaFiere has had a long and fruitful experience in the organization of numerous international trade shows in many different countries,” said Franco Boni, president of BolognaFiere. “This new venture is the natural progression of our 54-year-long history from one of our main events–the Bologna Children's Book Fair–and the meaningful network that we have established throughout these five decades with the global and professional book community. We are very proud to launch this new show, bringing the flair of Bologna to New York and thereby creating a premium rights marketplace for adult and kids’ content today."
Fair organizers said that following the announcement of the event in April, they have received expressions of interest in attending the fair by exhibitors from China, Catalonia, Sharjah, and Italy.
In addition to creating the chance to sell rights, the New York Rights Fair will launch a number of cultural events to help promote international titles in the U.S. market. The events, the organizers said, will celebrate the artistry, creativity, and innovation of the world’s publishing community, erecting a global village that will inspire, educate, and connect the international media world.
Registration for the fair will open on May 31, 2017, when the fair's website goes live at www.newyorkrightsfair.com. Visitor registration passes range from $75 to $225, and exhibitor booths range from $1,100 to $6,200. For more information on registration, please contact Jon Malinowski: jon@combinedbook.com.
