Bertelsmann Updates on Quarter, as Executive Sends New Signals
In a short first quarter trading update, Bertelsmann disclosed that sales fell almost 4 percent to 4.2 billion euros, as net income turned positive again at 35 million euros. Operating EBIT, the company's preferred measure of profits, rose 9.6 percent from the same period a year ago, to 217 million euros.
 
Aside from losses due to currency exchange, the only other negative factor cited in the short report -- which does not provide any breakouts by division -- is that "revenues were also impacted by declines in sales of physical recordings and revenues at Direct Group in North America."
 
For those interested in the fine level of detail on the still-developing leadership situation at Random House, today's Deluxe contains additional reporting on a message from chief executive Hartmut Ostrowski and further indications from other company executives.
Bertelsmann site

Children's Drive Sales Increase at Harper
Sales rose at HarperCollins in their third quarter, registering $302 million (up a little under 4 percent from a year ago) as operating income stayed level at $29 million for the period.
 
The strongest-performing division, according to ceo Jane Friedman, was the US children's division, which was "on fire" with sales up almost 50 percent and operating profit up almost 500 percent. Friedman says that divisions in the UK, Canada and Australia were all up, helped by foreign exchange (Harper wins when the dollar falls, unlike peers that report earnings in euros or pounds.) She adds that their third-party distribution business had a strong quarter and is looking forward to even better results in the next period thanks to client Hyperion's THE LAST LECTURE.
 
"The one soft spot is Zondervan, which is not a new story," Friedman says. "What's going on in the CBA... is pretty scary," she observes, adding that "the CBA is really diminishing and I'm not one who thinks it's going to recover any time soon." With Christian customers buying more product in the general market, Friedman says that Zondervan's books need to "have the content and look for the general market." Friedman believes that "what Nelson is doing is absolutely correct" in trimming and refocusing their list and says "we're also looking at our title count. Zondervan has to publish fewer books and focus on more of the books that have the potential" to work in the general markets. On the brighter side, Friedman notes that "spirituality is going through the roof," with the company benefiting via the Harper One division.
 
In other encouraging signs, Friedman says the statistics indicate their online browsing/sharing initiatives "are working brilliantly." She says, "not only are books being read and passed along to friends in a great number, but we're seeing books for which that has to be the reason why" sales have increased as well.

Marquez Writes Another Novel After All
A friend of Gabriel Garcia Marquez (and head of news at a Colombian radio station) says that the author "is putting the final touches to his new novel," after having said two years ago that he was finished with writing. Dario Arizmendi says, "He wrote a first draft which he didn't like, then another, then another; then, with the fifth draft, it was ready." Running about 250 pages, the book -- described as "a novel of love" -- should be publishable before the end of the year.
Guardian

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Personnel News and Announcements
Agent Lucienne Diver has joined The Knight Agency after fifteen years at Spectrum Literary Agency, where she specialized in fantasy, science fiction, romance, mystery and suspense.
 
Another change for a longtime Hyperion veteran: Associate publisher and executive director of marketing Jane Comins is joining Yale University Press as publishing and marketing director in late May.
 
Las Comadres, a national Latina organization, is launching a national latino book club, in "cooperation" with Borders and the Association of American Publishers. The club will meet monthly at selected Borders stores in 15 cities, and hopes to expand to all 60 cities where club members reside. Comadres board member Johanna Castillo is the national organizer of the club.
 
Asked about the AAP's participation, Tina Jordan told us that their "Publishing Latino Voices group has been developing a relationship with Las Comadres over the past year in our efforts to heighten awareness of titles written by Latino authors. Of course we were thrilled to hear that Borders was interested in developing this live book club in stores located in communities with Las Comadres chapters. We would certainly welcome the opportunity to explore similar relationships with all retailers."
 

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