Unit Editions and Read-Only Memory join Thames & Hudson

Thames & Hudson has acquired the back catalogue and rights to future titles of specialist independent publishers Unit Editions and Read-Only Memory (ROM). 

Co-founded in 2009 by Tony Brook, Patricia Finegan and Adrian Shaughnessy, Unit Editions publishes books for designers and design enthusiasts, which until now have been sold directly to consumers through its website and a handful of specialist shops. Shaughnessy said: “Thames & Hudson are the best people to help Unit Editions enter its next phase, by republishing some of our long-out-of-print titles and reaching an international audience through its large trade network.” 

ROM was founded in 2012 by former Faber book designer Darren Wall with the aim of creating “exhaustively researched and beautifully designed” archival anthologies on video games. Wall said: “I founded Read-Only Memory aiming to produce books on video games that matched the editorial and design vision of the finest graphic design and art monographs. That ROM is now an imprint of Thames & Hudson, an international publisher whose books inspired me originally, is a huge honour. I look forward to developing and expanding ROM’s list over the coming years, documenting and celebrating the ever-expanding video game medium.” 

Thames & Hudson said Unit Editions and ROM will now reach a wider consumer audience thanks to its international trade distribution. The publisher will also expand the lists further, with Unit Editions producing two to four titles a year and ROM expanding its publishing to titles that cover all aspects of video game culture.  

Together with Volume, Thames & Hudson’s publishing platform for books on visual culture co-founded in 2015 with Darren Wall, Unit Editions and ROM will be run by Thames & Hudson director of publishing and digital Lucas Dietrich, who led on the acquisitions. Dietrich said: “Thames & Hudson has always embraced new opportunities and talent. These new initiatives will burnish Thames & Hudson’s reputation as the leading publisher of all aspects of visual culture and provide access to new audiences and generations of readers.”