Notes: Fight Over Toys; Pamuk Charges Dropped; Displays
On the front page today, the Wall Street Journal dissects the
dispute between Amazon.com and Toys R Us, "a case study of how quickly
promising alliances can turn into acrimonious business disputes as
companies adjust to the shifting realities of the Web."
At the core of the suit and countersuit by the two companies: Toys R Us says that it should be the exclusive seller of toys, games and baby products on Amazon, while Amazon argues that it needs a full line of pertinent products and should be allowed to sell or have other retailers sell products Toys R Us doesn't stock. The point is important for Amazon, the Journal emphasizes, because while Amazon derives more than 90% of revenue from what it sells, it gains almost a third of profit from other retailers who sell on Amazon.com.
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A Turkish court today dropped charges against Orhan Pamuk, the author of Snow and My Name Is Red who has been facing charges of insulting "Turkishness" for talking critically about the country's treatment of Armenians and Kurds to a Swiss newspaper a year ago. Pressure from abroad and a need to conform to European Union legal standards played a major role in the decision, although less well-known Turks remain charged under the law.
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Cool idea of the day: On his Publishing Insider blog, HarperCollins's Carl Lennertz is searching for ideas for themed book displays in bookstores. Among examples: the Boulder Book Store's shelf of books with dates as the title, including 1421, 1491 and 1776, and a long-ago Barbara's display of books by long-dead authors with a sign saying, "Read 'em before you meet 'em." Ideas? Add 'em here.
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International Publishers Marketing, Dulles, Va., will distribute and market in North America the list of London publisher Beautiful Books. Founded in 2004 by Simon Petherick, who had been a publisher, author and marketer, Beautiful Books publishes children's and adult books and had not been distributed in the U.S. until now. Its program includes Sara Sharpe's Liontooth: The Story of a Garden; the interactive children's travel companion series, The Young Travellers Club; and the new horror fiction imprint, Bloody Books.
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The Roanoke Times looked at the new Meadowbrook Library in Shawsville, Va., "the first new library for the Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library System in 30 years." The county paid for construction while the community, through yard sales, chili suppers, tournaments and other benefits, raised $300,000 for books, CDs, DVDs and other items.
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The Collegiate Times of Virginia Tech offered an update on the Easy Chair Bookstore, Blacksburg, Va., which Russell Chisholm, owner of the Easy Chair Coffee Shop, opened in late 2004 to "fill the independent void" created by the closing of Printer's Inc. earlier that year. Chisholm said that the new store is building relationships with school professors, holds four or five events a month and has instituted a frequent buyer plan.
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NACS's CM Bulletin reported on stores in a California community college district that are seeking to expand a textbook rental program--in part by soliciting private donations to fund the effort.
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Event of the day: The Newbery and Caldecott award winners will be announced this morning at the ALA midwinter conference.
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The Belleville News-Democrat noted the opening late last year of Treasures of the Kingdom, a Christian bookstore, in Fairview Heights, Ill., just east of St. Louis. Among other products for sale: "what looks like a cool board game, The Bibleman Adventure Game for $24.95."
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The San Diego Union-Tribune profiled the Encore Book Store, a used bookstore run by the Friends of the Vista Library in Vista, Calif., which accounts for 90% of the $47,000 that the Friends raise for the library every year.
At the core of the suit and countersuit by the two companies: Toys R Us says that it should be the exclusive seller of toys, games and baby products on Amazon, while Amazon argues that it needs a full line of pertinent products and should be allowed to sell or have other retailers sell products Toys R Us doesn't stock. The point is important for Amazon, the Journal emphasizes, because while Amazon derives more than 90% of revenue from what it sells, it gains almost a third of profit from other retailers who sell on Amazon.com.
---
A Turkish court today dropped charges against Orhan Pamuk, the author of Snow and My Name Is Red who has been facing charges of insulting "Turkishness" for talking critically about the country's treatment of Armenians and Kurds to a Swiss newspaper a year ago. Pressure from abroad and a need to conform to European Union legal standards played a major role in the decision, although less well-known Turks remain charged under the law.
---
Cool idea of the day: On his Publishing Insider blog, HarperCollins's Carl Lennertz is searching for ideas for themed book displays in bookstores. Among examples: the Boulder Book Store's shelf of books with dates as the title, including 1421, 1491 and 1776, and a long-ago Barbara's display of books by long-dead authors with a sign saying, "Read 'em before you meet 'em." Ideas? Add 'em here.
---
International Publishers Marketing, Dulles, Va., will distribute and market in North America the list of London publisher Beautiful Books. Founded in 2004 by Simon Petherick, who had been a publisher, author and marketer, Beautiful Books publishes children's and adult books and had not been distributed in the U.S. until now. Its program includes Sara Sharpe's Liontooth: The Story of a Garden; the interactive children's travel companion series, The Young Travellers Club; and the new horror fiction imprint, Bloody Books.
---
The Roanoke Times looked at the new Meadowbrook Library in Shawsville, Va., "the first new library for the Montgomery-Floyd Regional Library System in 30 years." The county paid for construction while the community, through yard sales, chili suppers, tournaments and other benefits, raised $300,000 for books, CDs, DVDs and other items.
---
The Collegiate Times of Virginia Tech offered an update on the Easy Chair Bookstore, Blacksburg, Va., which Russell Chisholm, owner of the Easy Chair Coffee Shop, opened in late 2004 to "fill the independent void" created by the closing of Printer's Inc. earlier that year. Chisholm said that the new store is building relationships with school professors, holds four or five events a month and has instituted a frequent buyer plan.
---
NACS's CM Bulletin reported on stores in a California community college district that are seeking to expand a textbook rental program--in part by soliciting private donations to fund the effort.
---
Event of the day: The Newbery and Caldecott award winners will be announced this morning at the ALA midwinter conference.
---
The Belleville News-Democrat noted the opening late last year of Treasures of the Kingdom, a Christian bookstore, in Fairview Heights, Ill., just east of St. Louis. Among other products for sale: "what looks like a cool board game, The Bibleman Adventure Game for $24.95."
---
The San Diego Union-Tribune profiled the Encore Book Store, a used bookstore run by the Friends of the Vista Library in Vista, Calif., which accounts for 90% of the $47,000 that the Friends raise for the library every year.
