NEW YORK (AP) — In a three-way deal that would substantially consolidate the publishing industry, Hachette Book Group has purchased the publishing division of the Perseus Book Group, while selling Perseus’ client-service business to leading distributor Ingram Content Group.
Hachette, where authors include James Patterson and J.K. Rowling, jointly announced the transaction Tuesday with Perseus and Ingram. The news comes at a time when Hachette is in contentious negotiations with Amazon.com, which has slowed shipments, reduced discounts and removed pre-order buttons for numerous Hachette releases.
Perseus has a wide range of nonfiction imprints and partnerships, with books including H.G. Bissinger’s “Friday Night Lights” and Samantha Power’s Pulitzer Prize-winning “A Problem from Hell.”
The sale of Perseus had been rumored since company founder Frank Pearl died in 2012.
