Hachette Book Group

== History ==
The earliest publisher to eventually become part of the Hachette Book Group was [[Little, Brown and Company]], founded in 1837, acquired by [[Time Inc.]] in 1968.<ref name=companyhist />

[[Kinney National Company]] (rebranded in 1972 as Warner Communications) had acquired the [[Paperback Library]] in 1970 to form Warner Books.<ref>{{cite web | title=Science Fiction & Fantasy Publishers: Warner Books | url=https://www.worldswithoutend.com/publisher.asp?ID=156 | work=Worlds Without End | publisher=icow.com, LLC | access-date=6 October 2011 | archive-date=October 21, 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021170855/https://www.worldswithoutend.com/publisher.asp?ID=156 | url-status=live }}</ref>  In 1982, [[CBS Publications]] sold off [[Popular Library]] to Warner.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia| title=Copyrights of Golden-Age Comics| url=http://www.herogoggles.com/copyright1.html| encyclopedia=Golden-Age Comic book Superheroes & Villains Encyclopedia| access-date=20 September 2011| archive-date=September 21, 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110921035105/http://www.herogoggles.com/copyright1.html| url-status=live}}</ref>  In April 1985, Warner Books relaunched Popular Library starting out with five other books plus the reprint of ''Question of Upbringing'' continuing each month with the follow volumes from ''[[A Dance to the Music of Time]]'' series by [[Anthony Powell]].  Also, two books would be issued per month from Popular's new imprint, Questar, for science fiction.<ref>{{cite news |title=PUBLISHING: AUTHOR WINS RECOGNITION LATE |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/16/books/publishing-author-wins-recognition-late.html |access-date=26 September 2011 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=November 16, 1984 |first=Edwin |last=McDowell |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306150734/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/16/books/publishing-author-wins-recognition-late.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Also in 1985, Warner acquired audiobook publisher Network for Learning and renamed it Warner Audio.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Salmans |first=Sandra |date=1985-07-04 |title=NEW YORKERS & CO.; AUDIO PUBLISHING IS CATCHING ON |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/07/04/business/new-yorkers-co-audio-publishing-is-catching-on.html |access-date=2023-02-21 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=February 19, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230219235637/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/07/04/business/new-yorkers-co-audio-publishing-is-catching-on.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Time Warner]] was formed in 1989 by the merger of Time and Warner.<ref>{{cite news|title=Power Failure|url=http://ninamunk.com/documents/PowerFailure.htm|access-date=7 October 2011|newspaper=VANITY FAIR|date=July 2002|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110714183334/http://www.ninamunk.com/documents/PowerFailure.htm|archive-date=14 July 2011}}</ref>  Publisher Macdonald & Co. was bought in 1992 to become part of the Time Warner Book Group UK, and in 1996 the various branches merged to become Time Warner Trade Publishing, later renamed as AOL Time Warner Book Group.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/20011022/31145-new-name-for-time-warner-trade-publishing.html|title=New Name for Time Warner Trade Publishing|date=2001-10-22|website=[[Publishers Weekly]]|access-date=2019-08-05|archive-date=August 5, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190805183136/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/20011022/31145-new-name-for-time-warner-trade-publishing.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In 2003, Time Warner attempted to sell the Book Group but failed to get high enough bids.  In March 2006, Time Warner completed the sale of the Book Group to Lagardère, which placed it under its Hachette Livre book publishing arm.<ref>{{cite news|title=Lagardère to buy Time Warner books|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/06/business/worldbusiness/06iht-book.html|access-date=7 October 2011|newspaper=The New York Times|date=February 6, 2006|archive-date=August 20, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140820111229/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/02/06/business/worldbusiness/06iht-book.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The Warner Books subsidiary was renamed Grand Central Publishing, which launched a more literary imprint, Twelve, under former Random House editor-in-chief [[Jonathan Karp]].<ref name=nyt>{{cite news|last=Bosman|first=Julie|title=With a New Owner, a Book Publisher Gets a New Name|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/26/business/media/26warner.html?scp=4&sq=Grand%20Central%20Publishing&st=Search|access-date=7 October 2011|newspaper=The New York Times|date=March 26, 2007|archive-date=April 3, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403211746/https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/26/business/media/26warner.html?scp=4&sq=Grand%20Central%20Publishing&st=Search|url-status=live}}</ref>
On February 5, 2010, Hachette announced that it would adopt an agency pricing model for its e-books.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Bensinger|first1=Greg|last2=Galante|first2=Joseph|title=Hachette to Change E-Book Pricing, Joining Macmillan|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/businessweek/news/2010-02-05/hachette-seeks-to-change-e-book-pricing-joining-macmillan.html|access-date=February 18, 2010|work=Business Week|date=February 5, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100208213816/http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-02-05/hachette-seeks-to-change-e-book-pricing-joining-macmillan.html|archive-date=February 8, 2010}}</ref>

On April 11, 2012, the United States Department of Justice filed ''[[United States v. Apple (2012)|United States v. Apple Inc.]]'', naming [[Apple Inc.|Apple]], Hachette, and four other major publishers as defendants.  The suit alleged that they conspired to fix prices for [[e-books]], and weaken [[Amazon.com]]'s position in the market, in violation of [[United States antitrust law|antitrust law]].<ref name="washington post DOJ sues">{{cite news | url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/justice-department-files-suit-against-apple-publishers-report-says/2012/04/11/gIQAzyXSAT_story.html | title=Justice Department sues Apple, publishers over e-book prices | newspaper=The Washington Post | date=April 11, 2012 | access-date=2014-06-01 | author=Mui, Ylan Q. and Hayley Tsukayama | archive-date=October 6, 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006074356/http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/justice-department-files-suit-against-apple-publishers-report-says/2012/04/11/gIQAzyXSAT_story.html | url-status=live }}</ref> In December 2013, a federal judge approved a settlement of the antitrust claims, in which Hachette and the other publishers paid into a fund that provided credits to customers who had overpaid for books due to the price-fixing.<ref name="usatoday settlements rolling out">{{cite news | url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/03/25/amazon-settlements-ebooks/6869033/ | title=E-book price fixing settlements rolling out | work=USA Today | date=March 25, 2014 | access-date=2014-06-01 | author=Molina, Brett | archive-date=December 24, 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191224210523/https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2014/03/25/amazon-settlements-ebooks/6869033/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

On June 28, 2013, Hachette announced it would acquire [[Hachette Books|Hyperion Books]] from [[Disney Publishing Worldwide]].<ref name=bb>{{cite news|last1=Lee|first1=Edmund|title=Hachette Will Acquire Disney's Hyperion Book Publishing Business|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-28/hachette-will-acquire-disney-s-hyperion-book-publishing-business.html|access-date=July 3, 2013|work=Bloomberg.com|date=June 28, 2013|archive-date=January 25, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230125232724/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-06-28/hachette-will-acquire-disney-s-hyperion-book-publishing-business|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="digitalbookworld.com">{{cite news|title=Disney Sells Hyperion Adult Trade List to Hachette|url=https://www.digitalbookworld.com/2013/disney-sells-hyperion-adult-trade-list-to-hachette|access-date=July 3, 2013|work=digitalbookworld|date=June 28, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170903230539/http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2013/disney-sells-hyperion-adult-trade-list-to-hachette/|archive-date=September 3, 2017}}</ref> On March 12, 2014, Hyperion was renamed Hachette Books, with the naming of [[Crown Archetype]]'s editor-in-chief Mauro DiPreta as vice president and publisher.<ref>{{cite news|title=DiPreta Named Publisher of Hachette Books|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/61405-dipreta-named-publisher-of-hachette-books.html|access-date=May 5, 2018|work=PublishersWeekly.com|publisher=PWxyz, LLC|date=March 12, 2014|language=en|archive-date=May 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180506040010/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/61405-dipreta-named-publisher-of-hachette-books.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

In May 2014, [[Amazon.com]] announced it was no longer taking pre-orders for Hachette books, stating a breakdown in negotiations over profit-sharing arrangements. According to Hachette, Amazon had also stopped discounting its books, sending prices of Hachette titles in the U.S. to more than twice what they were selling for in the UK. Amazon published a letter on August 10, 2014 asking authors and readers to email Hachette's CEO Michael Pietsch and ask for lower e-book prices. Pietsch reportedly replied to each message he received.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Bishop|first1=Todd|title=Hachette CEO replies to Amazon fans: 'These punitive actions are not necessary'|date=10 August 2014|url=https://www.geekwire.com/2014/hachette-ceo-replies-amazon-fans-punitive-actions-necessary/|publisher=GeekWire|access-date=11 August 2014|archive-date=April 3, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220403205323/https://www.geekwire.com/2014/hachette-ceo-replies-amazon-fans-punitive-actions-necessary/|url-status=live}}</ref>

In November 2014, Hachette announced that it had entered into an agreement to purchase nonfiction publisher Black Dog & Leventhal. The sale was finalized in January 2015, and Black Dog & Leventhal became an imprint of the Hachette Books publishing division.

In June 2014, the company in conjunction with [[Ingram Content Group]], and [[Perseus Books Group]], announced a three-way deal whereby Hachette would buy Perseus and then sell that company's client services businesses to Ingram. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.<ref name="HachettePerseus">{{cite magazine|title=Perseus Books Group being acquired by Hachette|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/63029-hbg-buying-perseus-ingram-to-get-distribution-biz.html|access-date=20 September 2014|magazine=Publishers Weekly|archive-date=January 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210125233325/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/63029-hbg-buying-perseus-ingram-to-get-distribution-biz.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The deal was called off on August 7, 2014.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/hachette-calls-off-perseus-book-purchase-1407446685 | work=The Wall Street Journal | first=Jeffrey A. | last=Trachtenberg | title=Hachette Calls Off Perseus Book Purchase | date=7 August 2014 | access-date=March 7, 2017 | archive-date=September 23, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923050638/https://www.wsj.com/articles/hachette-calls-off-perseus-book-purchase-1407446685 | url-status=live }}</ref> On March 6, 2016, HBG announced that it had entered into a binding agreement to purchase the publishing division of The Perseus Books Group. Perseus's distribution business was sold to Ingram in a separate move. The sale was completed in April 2016, and the publishing business joined HBG as the Perseus Books publishing group.<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/industry-deals/article/69543-hachette-agrees-to-buy-perseus-publishing-business.html | work=Publishers Weekly | first=Jim | last=Milliot | title=Hachette Agrees to Buy Perseus Publishing Business | date=6 March 2016 | access-date=September 22, 2017 | archive-date=September 23, 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923002641/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/industry-deals/article/69543-hachette-agrees-to-buy-perseus-publishing-business.html | url-status=live }}</ref>

In April 2016, HBG announced an agreement to create a joint venture with the Yen Press imprint and Japanese publisher Kadokawa. Yen Press became known as Yen Press LLC, and is no longer considered an imprint of HBG's Orbit publishing division.

On September 17, 2018, Hachette acquired the Christian publisher Worthy Publishing.<ref>{{Cite news| first1 = Jim| last1 = Milliot| title = Hachette to Buy Worthy Publishing| work = PublishersWeekly| date = September 17, 2018| access-date = 2018-12-30| url = https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/religion/article/77753-hachette-to-buy-worthy-publishing.html| archive-date = December 30, 2018| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181230181057/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/religion/article/77753-hachette-to-buy-worthy-publishing.html| url-status = live}}</ref> This was followed by a reorganization in November, in which Worthy Publishing and [[FaithWords]] merged their teams under the Hachette Nashville division, and Hachette Books was moved under the Perseus Books division while taking the Da Capo Press staff and imprints. A total of 25 employees were leaving in the move, including Mauro DiPreta (Hachette Books' vice president and publisher) and John Radziewicz (Da Capo Press's vice president and publisher). [[Basic Books]] will also take on [[Seal Press]], which it will continue as an imprint.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Milliot |first1=Jim |title=In HBG's Reorg of Nashville Outposts and Flagship Imprint, Publisher DiPreta to Leave |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/78581-hbg-makes-changes-to-hachette-books-nashville-divisions.html |access-date=18 October 2019 |work=Publishers Weekly |date=November 13, 2018 |archive-date=October 18, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191018184552/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/publisher-news/article/78581-hbg-makes-changes-to-hachette-books-nashville-divisions.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

On June 1, 2020, Hachette was one of a group of publishers who [[Hachette v. Internet Archive|sued the Internet Archive]], arguing that its collection of e-books was denying authors and publishers revenue and accusing the library of "willful mass copyright infringement".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/01/books/internet-archive-emergency-library-coronavirus.html|title=Publishers Sue Internet Archive Over Free E-Books|date=June 1, 2020|access-date=June 12, 2020|work=[[The New York Times]]|first=Elizabeth A.|last=Harris|archive-date=June 12, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200612122012/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/06/01/books/internet-archive-emergency-library-coronavirus.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{caselaw source | case = Hachette Book Group, Inc. v. Internet Archive | courtlistener = https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/17211300/hachette-book-group-inc-v-internet-archive/ }}</ref>