In a move that could add to the book publishing world’s jitters about the effect of e-books on their business, author Stephen R. Covey has transferred the right to publish the electronic editions of two of his best-selling business books, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and Principle-Centered Leadership from Simon and Schuster to Rosetta Books. Rosetta, in turn will market these e-books exclusively through Amazon for use on the Kindle book reader. An article in the New York Times about this move says that Covey will garner a higher percentage of the profit with this new arrangement. Covey also has plans to publish the electronic versions of a number of his forthcoming books through Rosetta.
The whole issue about who has the rights to the electronic editions is apparently still up in the air. According to the Times article, “Many authors and agents say that because the contracts for older books do not explicitly spell out electronic rights, they reside with the author. Big publishing houses argue that clauses like ‘in book form’ or phrases that prohibit ‘competitive editions’ preclude authors from publishing e-books through other parties.”
Another element in this story is the effort by major publishers to curb the growing power of Amazon in the marketing of books. Stay tuned for later developments.
The whole issue about who has the rights to the electronic editions is apparently still up in the air. According to the Times article, “Many authors and agents say that because the contracts for older books do not explicitly spell out electronic rights, they reside with the author. Big publishing houses argue that clauses like ‘in book form’ or phrases that prohibit ‘competitive editions’ preclude authors from publishing e-books through other parties.”
Another element in this story is the effort by major publishers to curb the growing power of Amazon in the marketing of books. Stay tuned for later developments.
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