Malaysia's Fixi wins at International industry awards

Malaysia has scooped the top prize at the inaugural LBF International Book Industry Excellence Awards, presented earlier this evening (8th April).

The US was also successful, picking up three gongs, while Belarus, Pakistan, India, Denmark, Australia and China all received awards (see full winners' list, below). But it was new Malaysian publisher Fixi which took home the coveted The Bookseller International Adult Trade Publisher Award at the event held in the Earls Court Conference Centre.

Fixi has gained a strong reputation in the three years since its inception by snapping up top authors for its translation list.

For the US, the University of Chicago Press won the international academic and professional publisher award, while The Best Translated Book Award won in the Literary Translation Initiatives category. Robert Kirkman, founder of comics imprint Skybound, which created the Walking Dead series, meanwhile, won in the best use of IP category.

Jacks Thomas, director of The London Book Fair, said: “It’s wonderful to be able to celebrate the best international talent at our awards. From new companies like Fixi in Malaysia to publishing stalwarts like renowned Danish agent, Anneli Ha [winner of the International Literary Agent award], the winners provide a fascinating showcase for international publishing.”

The awards are run in association with The Publishers Association and give recognition from the UK to the best companies and individuals from across the international publishing world. They celebrate excellence in the book industry and cover all aspects of international publishing, including academic publishing, the supply chain, education, children’s publishing and digital innovation.

Richard Mollet, c.e.o of the UK's Publishers Association, said: “Around the world, publishers are innovating and developing new ideas of how and what publishing could and will look like in the future and these awards are a great opportunity to demonstrate our success as an industry.”

A panel of UK judges, with international or discipline-specific expertise, judged the 15 award categories.

Meanwhile the London Book Fair Lifetime Achievement Award was also presented to Deborah Rogers of Rogers, Coleridge and White.

The full winners of the LBF International Book Industry Excellence Awards are:   
 
IPA Freedom to Publish Award : Ihar Lohvinau, Belarus
Korea Market Focus Outstanding Contribution Award: Eric Yang Agency
The Bookseller International Adult Trade Publisher Award: Fixi, Malaysia
The Crossmedia Award for Best Use of IP: Robert Kirkman, Skybound, US
The International Academic and Professional Publisher Award: University of Chicago Press, US
The International Education Initiatives Award: Indigenous Literacy Foundation, Australia
The International Educational Learning Resources Award: Penguin Australia
The International Literary Agent Award: Anneli Høier, Leonhardt & Høier Literary Agency, Denmark
The International Literary Translation Initiative Award: Best Translated Book Award, US
The International Trade Children’s and Young Adult  Publisher Award: Tara Books, India
The UK Publishers Association Copyright Protection Award: Oxford University Press, Pakistan
The Market Focus Achievement Award: Motilal Books of India
The Publishers Weekly  International Book Industry Technology Supplier Award: Publishing Technology, China
The Publishing for Digital Minds Innovation Award: (to be decided at pDMC)
British Council International Digital Publishing Entrepreneur of the Year Award: Ricardo Almeida, Brazil