Books on Tape, the Random House division that produces and distributes audiobooks for the library and consumer rental and mail-order markets, is moving its fulfillment and distribution operations from Santa Ana, Calif., to the main Random operations center in Westminster, Md. Books on Tape president Scott Matthews, who is also publisher of Random House Audio, made the announcement in a company memorandum.
The relocation, already under way, is scheduled for completion in mid-January 2005. In addition, BOT's IT and finance operations will be moved to New York. As a result, the BOT Santa Ana facility will be closed in early 2005 and the operations and fulfillment positions there eliminated. According to Random House spokesperson Stuart Applebaum, several dozen positions are affected by the changes. "We're going to soon outgrow the dedicated fulfillment space we have in Santa Ana," noted Applebaum. "It makes sense to move into the larger Random House operations center at this point. A number of positions will be added to the Westminster facility to accommodate the additional workload they will be taking on come 2005."
BOT's presence in California will still be strong, however. The book acquisitions and BOT library sales staff will remain in Santa Ana, moving into new office space that will be selected later this year. "We want to maintain the independence of the sales and acquisitions," said Matthews. Audio recording and production will continue at the BOT studio in Los Angeles. And, Matthews said, there are plans to build additional studio space in Los Angeles this summer.
