The Bookseller.com

21st November 2008

Neill Denny is editor-in-chief of The Bookseller. He will be blogging on the book business and on how the print magazine is produced each week.

Pottering about no longer

05.09.08

This week we see another clear indicator of how Bloomsbury will develop in the aftermath of Harry Potter as the publisher launches its new academic list. Bloomsbury has adopted a bold, almost revolutionary, model: content will be free to all on the web using Creative Commons licences, while the books will also be available as print-on-demand publications. The calculation is that the free content will act as a stimulant for a profitable number of readers—and libraries—to want to retain and own a printed version. Although not directly under the aegis of Richard Charkin, the new imprint bears many of the maverick hallmarks of the web-friendly former Macmillan boss.

Indeed, his arrival at Bloomsbury less than a year ago may well prove to be a significant milestone in the com-pany's development. Since its establishment in 1986, when he took the post of chairman and chief executive, Nigel Newton has been an exceptionally hands-on boss—but one man can only do so much. Charkin's arrival brings in another heavyweight at the top of the business and has allowed Newton to look at new areas.

Bloomsbury was founded weeks after Headline in 1986, and the history of the two publishers provides an interesting contrast. Tim Hely-Hutchison, Newton's equivalent at Headline, has done deal after deal and is a world-class delegator. He has also sold up, to Hachette, and with that muscle behind him has built the largest publisher in Britain.

Newton has floated, but stayed independent, and has built a hugely strong publisher that has now successfully expanded into reference, with the A & C Black deal and into Germany and the US. He is now handily placed, with numerous revenue streams beyond Potter and a £50m war chest in the bank, money that he may well use to fund further expansion as the valuations of other publishers fall in a general downturn.

Critics will argue that he has struck lucky with Potter, that any fool can get rich with an oil well in their back yard. But this shallow analysis is to ignore that it was Bloomsbury which first spotted Potter—but only after J K Rowling had been sent packing by more than a handful of other publishers—it was Bloomsbury which hung on to her over a seven-book series, and it was Bloomsbury's innovative marketing that built much of the mega-brand she is today. Newton may well run Bloomsbury for an-other 20 years, which is plenty of time to build a legacy not over-dependent on the boy wizard.