Simon & Schuster was founded in New York City in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln ("Max") Schuster. Simon & Schuster became the trade publishing division of the CBS Corporation in 2006, and the company’s imprints include Simon & Schuster, Scribner, Atria Books, Touchstone, Gallery Books, Pocket Books, Howard Books, Threshold Editions, Free Press, and others. Children’s imprints include Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, Simon Pulse, Aladdin, Little Simon, Beach Lane Books, Margaret K. McElderry Books, Saga Press, Paula Wiseman Books and Simon Spotlight. Simon & Schuster publishes over 2,000 titles annually under 35 different imprints.
Analysis & Key Developments
Financial
Simon & Schuster’s revenues increased marginally by 2 million, from 778 million in 2014 to 780 million USD in 2015. The increase in operating income of 13% primarily reflected a favorable product mix, including strong backlist and digital audio sales and lower production and distribution costs. The full-year results were bolstered by an extremely strong fourth quarter in which earnings jumped 34% over the final period in 2014 to 34 million USD. Revenue rose 8% to 233 million USD.
Internal Organization
The company launched SimonSays.com, a new portal offering paid online video courses from Simon & Schuster authors.
In January 2016 Simon & Schuster announced the new imprint Scout Press, a home for literary fiction within the Gallery Books Group.
North Star Way was also launched in January. The platform-based program provides authors with services beyond traditional publishing, from brand management and online courses and subscriptions to sponsorships and business partnerships.
International
Simon & Schuster is active in publishing and distribution in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia. The company has an international sales presence in every major market and reaches more than 100 countries and territories. A new international company, Simon & Schuster India, was launched in 2011.
Digital
In 2015, the overall sale of digital content, including audio downloads, represented approximately 25% of Simon & Schuster’s revenues, down from 26.4% in 2014. E-book sales fell in 2015, while sales of digital audio increased between 35% and 40%. The decline in digital revenue was offset by a rise in print sales. Reidy noted that, "In addition to an increase in sales in its audio division, sales in the children’s group rose, while sales in the adult division were flat." Simon & Schuster currently has more than 18.000 e-books available for sale, with e-books sold in nearly 250 non-English speaking territories around the world.
E-book Distribution
In June 2016 Simon & Schuster entered into a global e-book distribution agreement with Start Publishing LLC. S&S will handle digital distribution of Start’s catalog of over 7,000 new and backlist titles from twelve imprints in all territories worldwide.
Bestsellers
In 2015, Simon & Schuster published 249 New York Times bestsellers in hardcover, paperback and e-book formats, with 32 at number one. Bestselling titles in 2015 included The Wright Brothers by David McCullough, Bazaar of Bad Dreams by Stephen King and ongoing sales of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize-winning 2014 release All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. Bestselling children’s titles from Simon & Schuster were Dork Diaries 10 by Rachel Renée Russell, Rush Revere and the Star-Spangled Banner by Rush Limbaugh and Kathryn Adams Limbaugh and Michael Vey 5 by Richard Paul Evans.
Return to the full listing of the world's largest publishers.
