MediaBay Shuts Down

After investing millions of dollars in an unsuccessful attempt to transform itself from a traditional book club for spoken-word audio to a distributor of digital audio, MediaBay is closing down. MediaBay, which had been looking for a buyer for more than a year, said “it has been unsuccessful in its attempt to sell the company, and has no viable alternative except to cease operations and liquidate its assets.” MediaBay, which had an accumulated deficit of $163 million, hopes to complete the sale process by early September.

Clinton Book Set for Sept. 4

Knopf will release former President Bill Clinton's next book, Giving: How Each of Us Can Change the World, September 4. The book, which had originally been set for a late 2007/early 2008 publication, was moved up in anticipation of the annual meeting for Clinton's nonpartisan nonprofit, the Clinton Global Initiative. A first printing of 750,000 is planned.

New Borders Investor

In a filing with the SEC last week, Spencer Capital Management reported that it has acquired a 6.8% stake in Borders. According to the filing, Spencer views Borders as an “attractive investment opportunity” and may acquire additional shares in the future. In late June, Spencer representatives talked to Borders CFO Ed Wilhelm about Borders's business, and Spencer intends to have more conversations with directors and management to discuss the company's operations. Spencer has no immediate plans to present specific proposals to management or the board.

Listening Library Sets Potter Audio At 635,000

Listening Library has announced a first printing of 635,000 copies for its unabridged audiobook recording of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, narrated by Grammy winner Jim Dale. The Deathly Hallows recording will run 21½ hours and carry a suggested retail price of $79.95. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, which also had a 635,000-copy first printing, racked up sales of 165,000 units in its first weekend of release, making it the fastest-selling audiobook of all time.

Crichton Changes Logo For 'Embryo'

FSG imprint Sarah Crichton Books is changing the appearance of its company logo for Beth Kohl's August book about IVF, Embryo Culture: Making Babies in the Twenty-First Century. Publicity manager Kathy Daneman said the image, which replaces the traditional FSG three fishes with spermatozoa, is only “temporary” and is “a tongue-in-cheek adaptation for the book.”

Obituary: Filomena Tuosto

Filomena Tuosto, former art director at FSG Books for Children, died June 21 from cancer. She was 55. Born in Italy, she began her career at Philomel Books and moved to William Morrow before joining FSG, where she worked with such authors as Mordicai Gerstein and David Small. As a freelancer she created the logos for Holtzbrinck's Square Fish and Feiwel and Friends book lines.