Big Five

Except for lead titles, HarperCollins will no longer send advance review copies (ARCs) in print format for children’s books.

In a move likely related to PRH’s failure to acquire Simon & Schuster, Markus Dohle will step down from his position as CEO of Penguin Random House.

The brightest sparks of the year.

Parent company Paramount may seek or prefer a buyer that doesn’t require yet another review by the Department of Justice.

A large group of agents have signed an open letter supporting the HCP Union, which has been striking since Nov. 10.

The strike began Nov. 10 and continues as of this writing. About 250 workers belong to the HarperCollins union; the publisher employs about 4,000 globally.

Simon & Schuster sold 900 copies of a collector’s edition of Dylan’s new book, The Philosophy of Modern Song, for $599.

PRH’s journey to acquire Simon & Schuster has come to an end.

Thesis will publish “urgent idea-driven nonfiction by thought leaders, journalists, and experts with a strong point of view,” starting spring 2023.

Big publishers can leverage smaller marketing spend to greater effect than smaller publishers.

Overall, PRH sales increased by more than 6% but profits were down by 1.8% due to cost challenges related to supply chain and inflation.

The unpredictable and subjective nature of publishing can look like incompetence to those outside the industry.

Publishing paths outside the Big Five are considered distinctly unattractive by the Department of Justice in its pre-trial brief.

In November 2021, the US Department of Justice moved to block, on antitrust grounds, the acquisition of Simon & Schuster by Penguin Random House.

When Dana Canedy was hired by Simon & Schuster in 2020, it was the first time a Black woman had been put in charge of a major publishing imprint.

Inflation and supply chain issues lead a long list of concerns facing the publishing industry.

During the first quarter of the year, Simon & Schuster saw earnings nearly double due to strong backlist sales, BookTok, and low returns.

Higher manufacturing and freight costs are blame for reduced profits; lower sales of ebooks, which have higher profit margins, also contributed.

Michael Pietsch, the CEO of Hachette, delivered the keynote talk at the recent Book Industry Study Group conference.

Publishers Lunch has written a summary of what happened last Friday (March 4), when four editors announced their resignations publicly on Twitter.

CEO Jonathan Karp says Simon & Schuster expects 2022 to be another strong year.

Sales increased by 3.7 percent, with growth through chain bookstores, independent bookstores, gift stores, and international accounts.

HMH’s consumer book division was sold last year to HarperCollins; what remains has now been acquired by a private equity firm.

Publishers Weekly recently tabulated US bestselling books according to publisher.

Last week, Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster filed a response to the US Department of Justice’s antitrust suit,