B&T Revamping Replica, E-book Distribution

Baker & Taylor is uniting its print-on-demand and e-book distribution operations under a single corporate division that will be overseen by Susan Peterson, a Lightning Source veteran who joined B&T in early April. As part of the reorganization, the print-on-demand unit, Replica Books, is being transferred from B&T's Informata subsidiary into B&T's main operation, where it will be joined by ED (e-Content Delivery), the company's digital service that offers e-book distribution to libraries. "We think putting POD and e-books together will make us more efficient," said Jean Srnecz, v-p of merchandising, to whom Peterson will report. Peterson is v-p of content acquisition for B&T.

Replica Books' newest mandate is to focus on printing and distributing hardcover editions of out-of-print books that are ordered by libraries. Replica will not look to acquire rights to out-of-print titles, and partly as a result of that decision B&T eliminated the position of B&T publisher that had been held by Susan Frost; Frost left the company last month. "We will distribute books on behalf of publishers who will continue to hold the rights," Peterson told PW. While Replica will continue its paperback printing and retail operations, the company is concentrating on the hardcover-library link, "because that's where our strength is," Peterson said.

Libraries can still order a single copy of a hardcover title from Replica, but the company has raised its minimum print-on-demand order for paperbacks to 40 copies. A "minimal" price hike was also instituted earlier this year. Peterson said she is still reviewing how ED and Replica can be best integrated and said that some reorganization is likely. "We want to grow both areas," she stressed.

The changes at Replica are occurring just as SuperiorBooks.com, a small Indian Lake, N.Y., publisher, is taking Replica/B&T to arbitration, alleging that Replica "willfully" violated its contract to provide print-on-demand services to SuperiorBooks. SuperiorBooks is seeking $1 million in damages.

According to SuperiorBooks president Dick Purdue, his company's relationship with Replica has been plagued by slow delivery and printing defects. In one case, two books that were ordered in mid-August did not arrive until January, and when they did they were defective. Replica credited SuperiorBooks for the printing errors, but Purdue said, "We didn't need the credit, we needed the books."

More troublesome to Purdue has been what he termed "the Chinese water torture" Replica has used to get him to accept the minimum order requirements for paperback books. "Before they formally announced the changes, they were informally imposing them for months" and had shifted from a being POD supplier to a short-run printer, Purdue charged. "It really hurt my business." Purdue has since moved most of his POD business to Lightning Source.

At press time, Peterson was trying to arrange a meeting with Purdue and his attorney to resolve the issue.