HarperCollins’ Acquisition Of Thomas Nelson Is An Investment In Digital
HarperCollins is acquiring Christian publisher Thomas Nelson—publisher of the mega-bestselling Heaven Is For Real—for an undisclosed sum in a deal that will be finalized by the end of the year.
Thomas Nelson has been on the forefront of experimentation with digital publishing, and HarperCollins is buying not just the company but also that digital experience. Thomas Nelson is a privately held company, based in Nashville, that will now exist under the News Corp. umbrella. HarperCollins already has an existing religious imprint, Zondervan, which will continue to publish its own books. HarperCollins didn’t disclose Thomas Nelson’s sale price.
Thomas Nelson has done a bunch of cool things in the digital space. The company’s chairman and former CEO, Michael Hyatt, is an avid blogger with 104,779 Twitter followers. The company bundles free digital and audio editions with the purchase of any print book, and it has its own digital download store including bestselling books, audio, video and children’s materials. This February, it ran a Charlie and the Chocolate Factory-like sweepstakes to get readers into bookstores: Shoppers who found randomly placed “On the House” stickers in Thomas Nelson titles they purchased from booksellers across the country won digital prizes like e-readers, iPads and digital downloads.
HarperCollins’ Acquisition Of Thomas Nelson Is An Investment In Digital