Scholastic Inc.

Children’s books may be about finding the kid in all of us, but everyone in the children’s publishing business agrees that they have to grow up when it comes to taking advantage of profitable opportunities. The Internet is clearly not going away, yet with the need to protect children from cyberspace predators, publishers have to go through parents to get through to their young audiences. Once you reach them, however, it can’t hurt to be as multidimensional as possible. Jason Wells, publicity and marketing director for New York-based Harry N. Abrams Inc., says kids are looking for books that are not just self-contained

18,000 Based on preliminary figures from U.S. publishers, Bowker is projecting that U.S. title output in 2005 decreased by more than 18,000 to 172,000 new titles and editions. This is the first decline in U.S. title output since 1999, and only the 10th downturn recorded in the last 50 years. According to Bowker projections, however, 2004 numbers were a tough act to follow—it had the highest total of new titles and editions ever, and reflected an increase of 19,000 new books over 2003. Bowker, May 2006 No. 1 Great Britain, long the world’s per capita leader in the publication of new

Somewhere between the ages of five and 11, kids stop reading. Well, maybe not all of them, but a recent study spearheaded by Scholastic Inc. shows that readership drops off as children age. The results show that 40 percent of kids between the ages of five and eight read for fun every day. Only 29 percent of nine- to 11-year-olds read as frequently, and that number declines sharply through age 17. Running Press Book Publishers thinks it knows why—and how to reverse this troublesome trend. Running Press, a Philadelphia-based imprint of The Perseus Books Group, will release a new young adult (YA) title, “Cathy’s

Scholastic Press is betting there’s at least a few million readers out there who didn’t bring home the magic of J.K. Rowling’s famous boy wizard last summer. The paperback version of “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” the sixth installment of the series, hit book shelves on Tuesday, almost exactly a year after it caused mass-media attention with its midnight release last July. Scholastic, the U.S. publisher of the series, said an initial run of two million copies of the book went on sale on the paperback’s first day of release. This time around, the marketing of the 672-pager will involve Scholastic presenting five episodes

Last year, retail e-commerce totaled $88 billion, or 2.4 percent of total U.S. retail sales, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. In the first quarter of this year, U.S. retail e-sales hit $25 billion—2.7 percent of total retail sales for the quarter ($906 billion). And based on the average annual growth rate (in the mid 20-percent range) of the last few years, 2006’s year-end e-commerce totals are likely to top $110 billion. Book publishers in almost every market have launched e-commerce sites to tap the growing potential in e-sales. Major publishers such as Scholastic (ShopScholastic.com), Random House (RandomHouse.com), McGraw-Hill (Books.McGraw-Hill.com), Penguin Group

Walden Media, previously a production company known mainly for its smash-hit “The Chronicles of Narnia,” recently delved into the book publishing industry. The company is partnering with Penguin Group USA to publish books for young adults. Debbie Kovacs, vice president of publishing for Walden Media, spent some time with Book Business Extra! discussing the company’s venture into books and expanding the Walden brand. Kovacs is responsible for Walden’s partnership with Penguin. She also maintains relationships with major U.S. and U.K. publishers whose books may be turned into films. She says her company is currently in the process of developing more than 20 books --

Not even a George Clooney sighting could disrupt the 2006 Book Business Conference and Expo, which took place March 20-22 at the Hilton New York. The celebrity was filming his latest picture just feet away from the conference’s registration area and—predictably—attracted all sorts of ogling from attendees and passers-by, but it was the conference and expo that were the stars of the week. Much like the industry it serves, the conference found itself in an unprecedented state of evolution when it kicked off on Monday, March 20. In its 10th year and amid revolutionary changes in the world of book publishing, this year’s conference

‘Owen and Mzee: the True Story of a Remarkable Friendship’ The bond between a baby hippotamus orphaned during the Asian tsunami and a 130-year-old Aldabran tortoise is the basis for a recently released children’s book publsihed by Scholastic Inc. Written by Craig Hatkoff, his seven-year-old daughter, Isabella, and Dr. Paula Kahumba of Lafarge Eco Systems, operators of Haller Park in Kenya where the animals live, “Owen and Mzee: The True Story of a Remarkable Friendship” tells the story of how these two animals came together. Inspiration for the Hatkoff’s to write Owen and Mzee’s story came after the two saw the pair’s picture

The one thing that remains constant in the book publishing industry is change. That seems to be the underlying response from book publishing industry leaders interviewed by Book Business magazine in various market segments—trade, educational, professional, scientific, technical and medical, university presses among others. These top executives describe the challenges they foresee in the industry, and their strategies for making the years ahead profitable: • William J. Pesce, president and CEO, John Wiley & Sons Inc. • Lisa Holton, president, Scholastic Trade Books and Book Fairs • Philip Shaw, managing director, Elsevier Science and Technology Books • Eric Beck, vice president of sales and marketing, Continental

Top production managers share their insights for choosing the most appropriate materials for each project's audience and budget. There it is sitting in the queue. Files for the heavily illustrated 245-page marine biology book titled "The World Under the Sea: Mysterious Life Forms Revealed." Its budget: fairly restricted; distribution: students, local libraries and some bookstores; author's vision of the final product: a scholarly yet user-friendly piece that will withstand the test of time. What binding and cover materials do you choose? The decision isn't easy. If only there was a simple guideline to follow. While there is no clear set of rules, there