There seems to be a trend by book publishers to do exclusive deals on individual titles with bookshop chains which excludes other booksellers from sellling the particular title for a period of 2-3 months.
Not surprisingly independent booksellers are most unhappy about this practice particularly when the publishers and the chain concerned generate publicity and reviews for the title which results in the independent bookseller' clients coming in to buy the book and having to be told I'm sorry but it is only available from Whitcoulls.
There is a school of thought that suggests these deals may be illegal and my knowledge of the Fair Trading Act is not sufficient to comment on that but I would have to say that in my view the practice is immoral and totally unfair. And it is something I would never have agreed to in my corporate publishing days.
The following is an e-mail communication between independent booksellers concerning the latest instance:
News broke on Friday that Harper Collins had agreed late last year to sell their full shipment of (I think) 5,000 cc of Lionel Shriver's new title Post-birthday World to Whitcoulls for release March. We're to get it 6 weeks later.
However you may have noticed in Expose # 335 of 30 Jan 07 (now from Sandra Noakes, H Coll NZ) in its INTERVIEWS / REVIEWS/EXTRACTS section: "Lionel Shriver, author of Post Birthday World will be interviewed and her book will be reviewed in a March issue of the Dominion Post". Effectively this means that HarperCollins is doing a major promotion for W/C as well which is reprehensible. All for about $100,000 nett.
This reminds us of when Penguin sold the Jane Austen Book Club on exclusive to Whitcoulls to which we also objected because it was literary fiction and unfair trading. Penguin didn't line up any promotion for it. An irony with JA Books Club was that it was a bestseller for Dymocks Newmarket at the same time and it may well be that Dymocks will also be able to source Post-birthday World in the same way. Well and good, but what about we independents?
Chris Casey and Tony Fisk have received some strenuous objection but let's give them more. They're meeting again about it this morning.
This is from Russell McVeigh website, a bit simplistic (and more to do with mergers usually) but perhaps handy in the meanwhile:
Restrictive Trade Practices
The key restrictive trade practice provisions in the Act are:
section 27, which prohibits contracts or arrangements which substantially lessen competition in a market;
section 30, which prohibits price fixing (which is deemed to substantially lessen competition in a market); and
section 36, which prohibits the taking advantage of a substantial degree of market power for certain prescribed purposes.
Collective boycotts and resale price maintenance are also prohibited by the Act.
The "substantial lessening of competition" and "substantial degree of market power" tests are similar to those applied in Australia under the Trade Practices Act 1974.
Nielsen BookData says: For sale with non-exclusive rights in: Australia, New Zealand, United States
Plot synopsis looks lightish, a bit like Double Fault, however this shop hasn't received a reading copy:
It all hinges on one kiss. Whether Irena McGovern does or does not lean in to a specific pair of lips in London will determine whether she stays with her disciplined, intellectual partner Lawrence or run off with Ramsey, a hard living snooker player.
US editions; Hardback and large print paperbackb 1 Mar US25.95 possibly worth it, but I would rather see an end to Australian trade paperback literary fiction as exclusives to Whitcoulls.
Bookman Beattie says - We haven't heard the end of this and I believe publishers should think very carefully before going down this road.It may prove to be a very rocky one.
As I said in my blog of February 7 we are fortunate in New Zealand to have many excellent independent bookstores but their livelihood will be put at risk with this sort of short-sighted behaviour from publishers.
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