The part of the Hachette-Perseus deal you didn't hear about: It involves 400 leading indie publishers. The Perseus “Wherehouse” in Jackson, TN And it was a disastrous takeover for some of us.
Melville House’s books were in the process of being moved to the Perseus warehouse in Jackson, Tennessee when Perseus basically dropped everything in a mad rush to buy PGW (when its previous owner unexpectedly announced it was bankrupt over the Christmas holiday). Perseus’ rudderless warehouse seemed to simply stop functioning. When it lost an entire shipment of one of our titles — 4,000 books they acknowledged receiving but nonetheless couldn’t find — we started calling the facility the “wherehouse” … because they didn’t know where they’d put our books. Funny, but it never got better and brought us to the verge of bankruptcy; Perseus denied the problems and offered no restitution, and so we switched to another distributor in relatively short order, as did many of its other clients.
The Wall Street Journal story, by Jeffrey Trachtenberg (which is behind a paywall), includes slightly more reporting: Ingram Adds New Tools for Academic Libraries on ipage Search and Order Content Platform. Nashville, TN (PRWEB) June 26, 2014 Ingram Content Group Inc. today announced enhancements to its widely-adopted ipage® search and order content platform including new functionality that makes searching, selecting and ordering materials easy for academic libraries worldwide.
“Ingram is devoted to helping academic libraries find relevant content for their important customers,” said Shawn Everson, Chief Commercial Officer, Ingram Content Group. “I’m confident that our enhanced ipage platform will improve the experience of our users, and give them tools to more easily find and purchase content to meet the complex needs of their patrons.” Barnes & Noble to split bookstore, Nook units - Los Angeles Times. Faced with dropping e-reader sales, Barnes & Noble Inc. said Wednesday that it is spinning off its Nook business as a separate public company in an effort to boost shareholder value.
The split will be completed by the first quarter of next year, the company said. The company also reported its fourth-quarter results, showing a drop in comparable sales at Barnes & Noble stores, in addition to continuing losses with the Nook. Revenue in the Nook unit fell 22% to $87 million. Digital content sales fell 19% to $62 million. Barnes & Noble posted a fourth-quarter net loss of $36.7 million, or 72 cents a share, compared with a loss of $114.8 million, or $2.04, a year earlier.
Analysts estimated a loss of 59 cents a share and revenue of $1.19 billion. “We believe we are now in a better position to begin in earnest those steps necessary to accomplish a separation of Nook Media and Barnes & Noble Retail,” Michael P. Follett-invests-in-showevidence-inc-248727551. RIVER GROVE, Ill., March 6, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Follett Corporation today announced an investment in ShowEvidence, Inc., a Santa Clara, California-based education software company that provides innovative solutions for assessing student and teacher performance.
The investment is the first from the Follett Knowledge Fund, a $50 million venture fund focused on disruptive technologies in the education/technology space. "ShowEvidence has created a cloud-based platform that helps schools embed digital learning materials within curriculum and assessment programs, and to score student work against state standards," said Mary Lee Schneider, President and CEO of Follett Corporation. "ShowEvidence has the potential to expand the effectiveness and scope of testing in education in ways that will drive greater levels of student achievement.
Follett is delighted to partner with this innovative company. " "ShowEvidence is an ideal first investment for the Follett Knowledge Fund," said Russell B. Ingram-content-groups-vital-source-technologies-acquires-coursesmart-248206681. NASHVILLE, Tenn., March 3, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Vital Source Technologies, Inc., Ingram Content Group's global leader in building, enhancing and delivering e-learning content, today announced that it has acquired the assets of CourseSmart, a leading provider of digital textbooks in the higher education market.
"We are pleased to make another investment in higher education and technology with the acquisition of CourseSmart," said John Ingram, Chairman and CEO, Ingram Content Group. "By integrating the strengths of CourseSmart with Vital Source, we are creating an extensive global sales channel for publishers and bringing the best in digital learning technology and accessibility to the higher education community. Lulu.com Expands Relationship With Ingram to Include Amazon's Kindle and Kobo eBook Distribution. Rockstand Inks Partnership With Ingram Content Group For Ebooks. Chegg Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2013 Results. SANTA CLARA, Calif., Feb. 13, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Chegg Inc.
(NYSE: CHGG), the leading student-first connected learning platform, today reported financial results for the three and twelve months ended December 31, 2013. Follett-announces-ebook-partnership-with-penguin-group-usa-245978561. Follett Corporation logo.
(PRNewsFoto/Follett Corporation) Scribd Adds New Travel Books Section to their eBook Subscription Service. Kobo-Launches-eReading-App-Designed-for-Windows-8-5294363. Kobo’s free, top-ranked eReading application brings more than 4 million titles with a customizable reading experience to North American readers.
Toronto, Canada (PRWEB) March 06, 2014 Kobo, a global leader in eReading, today announced the launch of their app designed specifically for Microsoft notebooks, tablets and desktops running the new Windows platform including devices by Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, Toshiba and the Microsoft Surface. The Kobo for Windows app enables Readers to access all the features they love on their Kobo device right on their Windows notebook, tablet or desktop, including the ability to carry, browse and shop for their favourite titles in the Kobo eBookstore.
“We are excited to give our Readers access to their Kobo eBooks on the Microsoft Windows ecosystem. Just like Kobo, Microsoft understands the importance of providing users with greater mobility and new ways to enjoy their favourite content. About Kobo Inc. Barnes & Noble filing shows 74% cut in Nook funding. Barnes & Noble has seen better days.
The Nook was thought to usher the giant brick-and-mortar into a new age, but news recently shows that may not be the case. Layoffs on the Nook team have been swift and widespread, and their recent SEC filing shows they’ve cut funding to their digital program by 74%. Barnes & Noble’s fiscal quarter ended at the end of January, and the filing shows a $61 million loss on $157 million in revenue.
It also notes their capital expenditures at $7.4 million for Nook. That represents a massive decline in spending over last year, with a 55% drop in the past nine months. The filing also said they have yet to fully meet obligations to Microsoft, where they previously agreed to sell eBooks in 10 international markets. It’s more bad news for Barnes & Noble, and it seems as though they’ve cut spending to the one avenue they had to bring them back.
Source: Publishers Weekly. Follett-invests-in-showevidence-inc-248727551. ABA eBook Titles Available Through LexisNexis Digital Library. NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--LexisNexis® Legal & Professional, a leading provider of content and technology solutions, and the American Bar Association (ABA), one of the world’s largest voluntary professional organizations, today announced an agreement to have ABA eBook titles available through the LexisNexis® Digital Library.
The Digital Library offers lawyers, librarians and other legal professionals a single destination to access, borrow and manage legal eBook titles, regardless of device. “Digital libraries are always open and accessible. Having greater access to ABA titles helps attorneys across all practice areas become more efficient by enabling them to get the content they need quickly and easily, no matter where they are or what time it is.”
“The agreement also expands the reach of ABA eBooks through the commitment of LexisNexis to promote the collection,” said Kathleen Hopkins, Chair of the ABA Standing Committee on Publication Oversight.