Geller warns ‘tired’ publishing model threatens to ‘dry itself out’ if role of agent not reimagined

Curtis Brown c.e.o. Jonny Geller has warned that the current “tired” publishing model threatens to “dry itself out” if the role of the agent – and their relationship with publishers – isn’t reimagined to become more of a partnership. 

Speaking at Frankfurt Book Fair of United Talent Agency’s (UTA) merger with Curtis Brown earlier this year, Geller said the move had “been in our thinking for 20 years” and that “we built ourselves to a certain size where we could go no further without a partner.”

“If you stay in your lane it can run out of tarmac,” he said, adding that “publishing at the moment has a real choice to make” about how opportunities for authors – whether they involve TV or film adaptations or other opportunities, such as television presenting – are handled between agents and publishers.

“Agencies will have to work out the conflict of interest issue [and ask]: can I represent to get the best possible deal for my client but also be a partner in the exploitation of what they’ve created?” he said. “Publishers will now be faced with more and more demands on bigger clients, brands, with agents saying: ‘I’m sorry, your publicity department is very good, but I need more than that’. And that will put a lot of pressure on an already very pressurised business. That will be international. And they will need to respond to that.”

He continued: “At the moment, I don’t see that appetite, because the model of publishing is going to repeat itself until it dries out. Which is essentially big advances, low back end and a lot of power to the publisher to choose its own distribution channels, and that presents a lot of problems for the creator. So the more power the creator has the more nimble publishers and agents will have to be.”

Geller said the title ‘agent’ no longer encapsulated the spectrum of work done, and didn’t emphasise enough the collaboration between different disciplines that he sees as the future of the profession.

“I actually think even the word agent is the wrong word, as it’s morphing into a different type of relationship with our clients,” he said. “Agent sounds like a broker between [the creator and the publisher]. And, of course, we do that as part of our job. But a much better use of our time is bringing in all our expertise from all areas to help the publisher get the best set. It’s ludicrous to be in opposition.”