Two influential publishing groups today came out in opposition to Bertelsmann's proposed acquisition of US publisher Random House, asserting the giant German media concern would control more than 36 percent of the US trade book market.
The Authors Guild, which represents 7,200 published authors, and the Association of Authors' Representatives, an organization of literary and dramatic agents, said they were filing a formal objection with the Federal Trade Commission.
"It's even worse than we thought," said Letty Cottin Pogrebin, president of the Authors Guild. "No single company should have this much control over an author's expression or this much influence on our culture."
Bertelsmann, Europe's largest media company, said the market-share estimate was way off base. "The Authors Guild evaluation of the scope of the adult-trade book market is absurdly skewed and seriously uninformed," the company said in a statement, putting the figure at 10.9 percent.
Bertelsmann, which owns Bantam Doubleday Dell, said on 24 March that it would buy Random House, the largest book publisher in the United States. While the companies did not disclose a purchase price, industry executives and analysts estimated that Random House would fetch about US$1.3 billion.
Paul Aiken, executive director of the Authors Guild, said the 36 percent figure was derived after analyzing 1996 revenue data compiled by Cowles/Simba Information, a publisher that tracks the industry.
Aiken said the data covers adult-trade books, both hardcover and quality paperbacks, primarily sold in bookstores.
