VNU Integrates Tracking Units
by Edward Nawotka -- Publishers Weekly, 5/27/2002
VNU Retail Entertainment, owner of BookScan and A.C. Nielsen, has changed the names of its various international book sales–tracking services to Nielsen BookScan. The company has consolidated management under executive director Richard Knight, who was formerly the managing director of Whitaker BookTrack and remains based in the U.K.
The move incorporates the better-known Nielsen name into the brand and creates a single brand name for all three services. Previously, the companies were known by the names BookScan in the U.S., Whitaker BookTrack in the U.K. and BookTrack Australia in Australia. In addition, VNU announced plans to integrate all three services into a single system by the start of the Frankfurt Book Fair in October. The new systems could allow users to track sales of an author or title around the globe.
