Penguin, Random House Announce Merger Deal

Penguin and Random House books sit on a shelf at a bookshop in London, Britain, 26 October 2012. Photo by EPA/BGNES

Penguin and Random House owners said on Monday they have agreed to form a joint venture, which will be called Penguin Random House.

German media group Bertelsmann will own 53% of the joint venture, while Penguin publisher Pearson will own 47%.

The tie-up between Penguin and Random House marks the first deal between the world's big six publishers, a step widely seen as inevitable as firms sought to adapt to the changing publishing landscape.

"Penguin is a successful, highly-respected and much-loved part of Pearson. This combination with Random House... will greatly enhance its fortunes and its opportunities," Pearson chief executive Marjorie Scardino, who is leaving the firm at the end of the year, said, as cited by BBC.

"Together, the two publishers will be able to share a large part of their costs, to invest more for their author and reader constituencies and to be more adventurous in trying new models in this exciting, fast-moving world of digital books and digital readers."

John Makinson, chairman and chief executive of Penguin, will be chairman of the merged group, with Random House boss Markus Dohle becoming chief executive.

The joint venture two firms will create a business with annual revenues of about GBP 2.5 B and account for about one-quarter of both the UK and US book markets.

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