As the publishing division of the CBS Corporation, Simon & Schuster publishes and distributes consumer books under imprints such as Simon & Schuster, Pocket Books, Scribner, and Free Press.

Key Company Developments in 2012 & 2013

Financial:

2012 revenues, which amounted to 790 million USD, were relatively flat compared to 2011 (787 million USD). Growth came from e-book sales, while print book sales were down. Revenues from digital sales increased 35% from the previous year and represented 23% of total publishing revenues in 2012 compared to 17% in 2011. Simon & Schuster also incurred litigation and settlement costs from the various e-book pricing cases. S&S's children's division had the best performance in the first quarter of 2013, while sales in the adult segment lower due to a lack of huge sellers, according to CEO Carolyn Reidy.

Ownership, Mergers & Acquisition, Internal Organization:

Following a reorganization of adult publishing, Free Press was integrated with Simon & Schuster, Touchstone became part of the Scribner Publishing Group, Howard Books joined the Atria Publishing Group, and the Gallery Publishing Group continued to house Pocket Books, Pocket Star, Threshold Editions, MTV Books, and Karen Hunter Publishing.

Simon & Schuster entered distribution partnerships with some of the largest sites on the web, including AOL, Blinkx.com, and Roku. Combined with pre-existing partnerships with YouTube, Goodreads and others, S&S videos garner more than 1 million views per month.

Pocket Books, America’s first paperback publisher, re-launched its Pocket Star line as an e-book imprint, featuring bestselling and debut authors in popular genres including women’s fiction, romance, thrillers, urban fantasy, and mystery.

International:

Most recently, S&S expanded its publishing program in Canada after the current Canadian conservative government approved the operation. S&S was the only multinational publisher in Canada prohibited from publishing Canadian books, due to foreign ownership regulations created to protect domestic cultural industries.

Digital:

Digital content represented approximately 23% of Simon & Schuster's revenues in 2012, up from 17% last year. Growth was highest in international markets and young adult, while adult fiction sales grew below the 14% average as popular authors held their print sales.

In November 2012, S&S entered the self-publishing business through a partnership with Author Solutions. Archway Publishing offers self-publishing services in fiction, nonfiction, business and children’s categories, with a backend powered by ASI, the self-publishing provider acquired by Pearson/Penguin earlier this year.

Bestselling Authors & Titles:

In 2012, Simon & Schuster published 317 New York Times bestsellers in hardcover, paperback and electronic formats, including 35 New York Times #1 bestsellers. Bestselling titles in 2012 include Kill Shot by Vince Flynn, Lone Wolf by Jodi Picoult, Far From the Tree by Andrew Solomon, and Proof of Heaven by Eben Alexander. Bestselling children's titles from Simon & Schuster include City of Lost Souls by Cassandra Clare and Dork Diaries 4 by Rachel Renee Russell.

Click here to return to the full listing of the world's largest publishers.