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S&S sees second quarter profit and revenue rises
Simon & Schuster's revenue and operating income rose in the second quarter, helped by lower production costs.
Publishing revenues grew $1m for the quarter ending 30th June 2018 to $207m in comparison the same period a year before, while operating income rose 7% to $31 million.
The results were released by parent company CBS, which also said that the publishing company’s operating income was up due to higher revenues and lower production costs. S&S chief executive Carolyn Reidy told Publishers Weekly the company had coped with rising paper and transportation costs by finding savings in other parts of the business, such as lower royalty write-offs and by making selective price increases.
Digital audiobook downloads continued to grow at the publisher, a trend seen by others in the US along with companies in the UK, and were up 27% in the quarter. Softer e-book sales meant that digital revenue was up 3% overall.
The Outsider by Stephen King and The Restless Wave by John McCain and Mark Salter were S&S’s bestselling titles of the period.
Last week, Reidy spoke out in support of CBS head Leslie Moonves following multiple allegations of sexual harassment levelled against him in a New Yorker magazine. The article details the allegations of six women who had professional dealings with Moonves and alleged sexual misconduct between the 1980’s and late 2000’s.
Ready said: “I have directly reported to Leslie Moonves for nearly 12 years, and during all that time I have been heartened and deeply impressed by the way in which women have been promoted and championed under his leadership at CBS, treated as equals and rewarded for their accomplishments and talent,” she said. "He has always been supportive, straightforward, and helpful to me and Simon & Schuster.”
Moonves denies the allegations, saying that he had made “mistakes” but never “misused” his position. During the conference call with analysts to discuss the CBS results, Moonves did not address the harassment allegations, citing the advice of counsel.
