First Penguin, the Simon & Schuster, and now Random House posts positive marks for growth in 2006. Worldwide revenues rose 6.5% to $2.59B according to Publishers’ Weekly. This is despite the $43.3 million that Random House was owed by AMS.
CEO Peter Olson pegged growth in the North American (all divisions with Crown and Knopf leading the way) and German markets as the primary reasons for increased profits. Random House also had 201 New York Times bestsellers with 37 of them no. 1s.
Despite the rosy past, Random House is still concerned about the future. If you recall, a few weeks ago, Random House UK CEO spoke about the increasing difficulty to make a profit in today’s marketplace. Agents came away with the opinion that Random House was readying them for lower advances. Olson didn’t have any specific concerns about 2007 and felt that RH would meet its financial goals.
So, on the one hand: investors don’t be concerned and on the other, agents: tighten your belts. It’s not a mixed message or anything.
Jane
Jane is a long time romance reader whose passion is, you guessed it, reading. She's currently loving contemporary authors like Sarah Mayberry and Karina Bliss but her first love will always be the historical. Some of her old time favorites are Amanda Quick and Johanna Lindsey and some of the new favorites are Sherry Thomas, Joanna Bourne and Claudia Dain. You can reach Jane by email at jane @ dearauthor dot com