ACTIVITIES IN 2009

• Send

Contrary to expectations, the Stephenie Meyer phenomenon did not run out of steam but continued and even increased in 2009, losing impetus only at the end of the year. With 45 million copies sold last year in some 40 countries (under the Hachette Livre name in English and French, and under license in all other languages), Stephenie Meyer reached the level of Dan Brown (Da Vinci Code) and JK Rowling (Harry Potter) - authors whose books transcend borders, language barriers and generations to become global bestsellers. Lagardère Publishing's deal with this previously unknown author was not based on chance, but born of a policy of constantly seeking out new talents. Innovation lies at the heart of its activity; the Group publishes no less than 17,000 new titles annually, and each year 50% of its revenue comes from books that did not exist the previous year.

This culture of permanent innovation is not limited to content. For several months, new means of digital distribution have been closely monitored by Hachette Livre, which is intent on maintaining its place in the value chain at a time when a new business model is being advocated by new technology companies, especially internet companies.
Tension between internet giants and leading groups from the world of publishing emerged in 2009. Using its position as number two in the world, Lagardère Publishing was able to consolidate the position of leading publishers in the debate that followed - one of the stated objectives when the Group started to strengthen its international position in 2003.
This consolidation continued in 2009 with the creation of a joint venture with the "number-one" publisher in Lebanon, Librairie Antoine, to service the Arabicspeaking market, and a partnership with one of China's leading publishing groups, Phoenix Publishing and Media Company, which should lead to a better understanding of this hugely promising market.

KEY EVENTS IN 2009

France

In 2009, Hachette Livre registered a sharp increase in its revenue and operating income. The spectacular performance of the illustrated books segment, linked to the success of the Stephenie Meyer books as well as those of Marabout, Asterix, and others under license from Disney, should not overshadow the excellent performance of general literature in a declining market.

The Prix Renaudot, awarded to Frédéric Beigbeder for Un roman français, and the Prix Médicis, awarded to Dany Laferrière for L'énigme du retour, meant that Grasset publications ended the year on a high note, while Mauvaise fille by Justine Lévy (Stock) and D-Day by Antony Beevor (Calmann-Lévy) also helped boost sales in this segment. However, the record for general literature sales undoubtedly went to Lattès with a million copies of Dan Brown's long-awaited Lost Symbol, in little over a month.

The year was less prosperous for the educational market due to the delay of long-awaited reforms, especially at secondary school level. Despite these circumstances, the Hatier group and Hachette Education gained market share while Didier, Dunod and Armand Colin were able to maintain theirs in the university publishing segment.

Larousse consolidated its positions, managing to offset the fall in dictionary sales with an increase in market share of illustrated practical books and children's books.

The industrial and commercial branch benefited from strong sales of the 50th anniversary edition of Asterix, and year-end book sales by Stephenie Meyer and Dan Brown. Annual pay negotiations were amicable and led to an agreement. 

The United States

2009 was a record year, thanks in particular, but not solely, to the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. Rather than stumble, its sales have continued to rise, with books from the series occupying four of the top six places on Nielsen Bookscan's 2009 bestsellers list. 30 million copies of this series were sold in the United States last year, helping to make Twilight the biggest bestseller of the decade according to USA Today. Overall, the Hachette Book Group had no fewer than 130 titles on the New York Times bestseller list. These include: Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell, The Shack by WP Young and True Compass, the autobiography of the late Senator Ted Kennedy, which has sold over a million copies.

Digital book sales received a considerable boost in 2009, reaching nearly 3% of annual revenue. In December alone they generated more revenue than in the whole of 2008. A price war has now broken out, with Amazon starting to sell its bestsellers at a loss via downloads. Its price of $9.99 was quickly copied by Wal Mart and the escalation affected print books, bringing the whole pricing structure downward. At the end of the year, several major publishers, including Hachette Book Group, decided to postpone the release of downloadable versions of their new books to curb this trend.

The United Kingdom and Commonwealth

Hachette UK held on to its number-one position among British publishers in 2009 with 16.4% market share. In doing so it extended its lead on its closest rival (gap of 3% vs. 1% in 2008) in a market notable for a fairly severe recession, with seven of the ten largest publishers seeing a fall in sales. Stephenie Meyer's Twilight series sold 11 million copies in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand, while no less than 150 of the group's titles - a record figure - appear on the Sunday Times bestseller list in the UK, with 30 topping it. Australia had a record year, largely due to the success of the Twilight series and a steady increase in local publishing. Hachette Australia became the country's number one publisher with market share of 16%.

Hachette India enjoyed a successful launch. Its growth has already pushed it to second position among Indian publishers. In the educational sector, Hachette UK posted a fine performance on the schools market but suffered from a difficult situation on the trade segment, with language methods in particular.

Spain and Latin America

Anaya's activity declined in markets that are suffering from one of the deepest recessions in the euro zone. The tourism and IT segments were worst affected. Against this harsh backdrop, Anaya Touring Club started to publish the collection of Totramundos guides, which were very well received by the market. Anaya Multimedia was the fi rst publisher to launch all of the new releases concerning Windows 7 in the second half of the year.

The end of the high school reform cycle affected the Education segment, albeit without affecting Anaya's share of it. For example, Anaya Educación began the replacement of levels 5 and 6 of Enseñanza Primaria as well as level 2 of Bachillerato, while improving its market share in core subjects. This replacement went ahead in Galicia (Xerais) and Catalonia (Barcanocva), while Bruño's schools division was active at a national level.

Bruño also benefited from the successful launch of the 50th anniversary edition of Asterix in Spanish, Galician, Catalan and Basque.

In General Literature, the novel El Mapa del Tiempo, by Felix J. Palma, published by Algaida Editores, won the Ateneo de Novela prize. In addition to its considerable sales in Spain came the transfer of copyright in some 20 countries.

In Mexico, activity suffered from the economic climate and disruption linked to swine flu; Venezuela faced export issues as well.

Brazil experienced strong growth, mainly due to government purchases as part of the national educational book programme.

Booklets

Booklets activity, which is structurally sensitive to the economic environment, continued to decline on a scale that reflected budget forecasts, in particular on the mature markets of France, the United Kingdom and Spain. Latin America also suffered from the business climate, and activity came to a halt in Brazil following a dispute with customs authorities. Japan registered a dip in activity after a particularly weak 2008. These declines were partly offset by the performance in Germany thanks to a growing number of collections, and in Italy thanks to a strong marketing campaign in 2009. A presence in Russia was established at the beginning of the year with the launch of the Bismarck collection, which appears promising.