PRH sells Author Solutions

Monday, 11 January 2016 Books+Publishing

Penguin Random House (PRH) has sold its self-publishing division Author Solutions to an affiliate of Najafi Companies, an US-based private investment firm, for an undisclosed sum, reports Publishers Weekly. Author Solutions was acquired by Penguin’s parent company Pearson in 2012 and became part of PRH following the merger. The division was the subject of a lawsuit filed in 2013 by a group of authors alleging it was offering ‘worthless marketing services’. The lawsuit was discontinued in 2015 following an out-of-court settlement. PRH CEO Markus Dohle said in a letter to employees that the sale ‘[reaffirms] our focus on consumer book publishing’. Author Solutions chief executive Andrew Phillips, a former Penguin executive, said he was excited to be joining a company where Authors Solutions would be more of a focus.

Category: International news