King Leaving BookScan
BookScan senior v-p Jim King will leave the company August 21 to pursue new opportunities. King has been with BookScan since 2000 and was a key figure in establishing the service, which measures about 70% of U.S. retail sales and has more than 300 subscribers. Jonathan Nowell, president of Nielsen Book, said a replacement will be announced shortly.
S&S Rebounds
S&S showed improvement in the second period ended June 30, with revenue increasing 5%, to $189.7 million, and adjusted operating income jumping to $15.2 million from $8.3 million in last year's second quarter. CEO Carolyn Reidy credited earnings gains to cost-cutting measures, operating efficiencies, "and good books." Big books included Laura Bush's Spoken from the Heart, Women Food and God by Geneen Roth, and Glenn Beck's novel Overton Window.For the first half of 2010, revenue fell 0.5%, to $341.4 million, while earnings jumped to $17.2 million from $6.2 million.
Dorchester Goes All Digital
Mass market romance publisher Dorchester Publishing has dropped its traditional print publishing and switched to an e-book/print-on-demand model effective with its September titles. President John Prebich said after retail sales fell by 25% in 2009, sales in 2010 "have been worse." Mass market shelf space has been reduced, forcing Dorchester to lay off its field sales force of seven. Sales and marketing v-p Tim DeYoung remains with the company. The editorial team remains, but monthly releases will be reduced from more than 30 to 25. Dorchester will do print copies for its book club business and has a deal with Ingram Publisher Services to do print-on-demand copies for selected titles. Prebich says e-books doing well will be released as POD trade paperbacks, but there will be no more mass market retail distribution.
Earnings Improve at Reader's Digest
Total revenue at Reader's Digest fell 19% in the second quarter ended June 30, to $436.5 million, but the company's EBITDA improved to $76.8 million from $71.4 million. The company emerged from bankruptcy earlier this year; during the quarter it eliminated 10% of its global workforce and expects to save $34 million a year as a result of job cuts. CEO Mary Berner said she expects to see the financial benefits of those cuts in the second half of the year. Book sales fell 8%, to $147 million in the quarter, while music/video sales declined 16%, to $70 million.
Turner Buys Fieldstone Alliance
Turner Publishing has acquired the publishing assets of Fieldstone Alliance, a Minnesota consulting and publishing firm aimed at the nonprofit market. The acquisition includes more than 50 business management titles geared toward helping nonprofit business leaders improve their communities. Fieldstone's books have sold more than 250,000 copies. Turner has taken over distribution of the titles. Earlier this year, Turner acquired the assets of Ancestry
.com, and Turner publisher Todd Bottorff said more acquisitions are likely in 2011.
NEPA and Publish or Perish Merge
The literary agencies New England Publishing Associates and Publish or Perish have merged. NEPA founder Elizabeth Frost-Knappman, and her partner, Edward Knappman, will work with Publish or Perish founder Roger S. Williams, who will be managing director of the new agency, now based at the Publish or Perish office near Princeton, N.J.
HC Releases Enhanced E-books
HarperCollins has released three enhanced e-books through the iBookstore and plans to do at least five more. The enhanced e-books sell for $14.99.
‘PW' Bestsellers Extended
Beginning this week, our four adult bestseller lists will be extended from 15 titles to 25 on our Web site, at www.publishersweekly.com/pw/bestsellers/index.html.
