HarperCollins UK

Understanding the Complex World of Star Wars Publishing
December 15, 2015 at 2:10 pm

Do you know your ‘ABY’ from your ‘G-canon’? How are you with ‘retroactive continuity’ (‘retcon’)? What are ‘Infinities’? What is the EU? (clue: it has nothing to do with Brussels) and what were ‘the returns of the Jedi’? To step into the world of Star Wars publishing is to enter a very particular universe, one…

Cybersecurity Should Be Key Issue in Book Industry, Says HarperCollins' Redmayne
December 9, 2015 at 2:17 pm

“We operate in a world where there is an enormous amount of data available, and while this is good for building relationships with customers and for direct sales, there is a risk. We should be aware that there are those who want to access our data. These cyber attacks are sophisticated and we have to…

Harpercollins Relaunches UK Site
September 2, 2014

HarperCollins UK has relaunched its website with readers able to buy e-books directly from the publisher.

People using the site can download digital versions of HarperCollins titles to read on the free HarperCollins reader app. Prices for titles range from 99p for Mark Sennen's thriller Bad Blood, to £8.99 for Robin Hobb's latest fantasy saga, Fool's Assassin.

At the moment, physical books are unavailable to buy through the site, with readers instead given links to purchase through another retailer, with purchase buttons for Amazon, Waterstones and W H Smith.

HarperCollins Launches Direct-to-Consumer Sales Site
July 8, 2014

HarperCollins has relaunched its US website, with direct to consumer print and e-book sales.

On the new US site, e-books will be available to readers around the world if HarperCollins holds rights. Print books will only be available within the US.

In a statement, the publisher said: "The capability to sell directly will enable the company to better understand consumer preferences and, most importantly, further extend the global reach of its authors." It added that authors would be able to use the technology to sell directly through their own sites.

 

HarperCollins Sees EBITDA Rise by 33%
February 7, 2014

HarperCollins worldwide saw its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) rise by 33% to $68m (£42m) in its second quarter.

The publisher attributed the increase to a "higher contribution to profits" from e-book sales and "ongoing operational efficiencies coupled with higher revenues" in its second quarter to 31st December 2012. Revenue, by comparison, increased 4% to $391m. E-book sales continued to rise for the publisher in the last quarter before Christmas, increasing by 39% and accounting for 17% of total sales.

Profits Drop For HarperCollins UK
January 2, 2014

HarperCollins UK has seen a 66% drop in profits for the year ending 30th June 2013, according to results filed with Companies House. Pre-tax profits at the publisher dropped from £8.3m in 2012 to £2.8m in 2013, a decline of 66%. Profit after tax stood at £1.07m, falling  80% from £5.3m. HarperCollins has attributed the decline in profits to costs incurred by a change in its distribution system.

Patricia Cornwell Changes Publishers, Lands Eight Figure Book Deal
August 7, 2013

After 18 years, best-selling crime novelist Patricia Cornwell is leaving Penguin for HarperCollins, making her the first major writer to jump ship since Penguin and Random House merged last month. Cornwell, best known for her crime novels based on medical examiner Kay Scarpetta, signed on for an eight figure, two-book deal with the HarperCollins' William Morris imprint. Penguin's Putnam imprint will release Dust, the 21st Scarpetta book in November, and William Morris will print the following one in the fall of 2014. 

App Watch: A look at what publishers are launching in the mobile space.
January 1, 2013

If you thought global atlas apps began and ended with Google Earth, now there's Atlas by Collins. Drawing on the HarperCollins UK imprint's rich history in map publishing, Atlas by Collins takes a different approach to geographic exploration. While not as granular as Google Earth and its grainy, stitched-together satellite images, Atlas by Collins focuses on beautiful, well-organized globes, all with full swipe and zoom functionality and arranged under three thematic headings: atlas essentials, people and power, and living earth.

HarperCollins Accused of Pulping Rainforests
December 13, 2012

Rainforest Action Network has launched a campaign urging HarperCollins to end the use of fiber from controversial sources after it said that independent forensic tests found significant quantities of pulp from Indonesian rainforests in several of the publishing company’s books.

Mixed tropical hardwood and high-risk acacia fiber were found in HarperCollins’ bestselling children’s book “Fancy Nancy’s Splendiferous Christmas,” RAN said. Acacia was also found in HarperCollins titles including “Splat the Cat: The Perfect Present for Mom and Dad” and “Talking Pictures: Images and Messages Rescued from the Past,” the environmental group said.