BTW News Briefs

Patent Infringement Ruling Against Lightning Source Overturned

On March 31, a St. Louis Appeals Court ruled that Lightning Source, a division of Ingram Industries and a provider of demand-based book manufacturing, had not infringed on a patent by printing books on demand. The opinion -- which reversed last year's $15 million verdict against Lightning Source, as reported by Bloomberg News -- was unanimous in finding that "no reasonable jury could find infringement on the correct claim construction." The On Demand Machine Corporation originally filed the patent infringement lawsuit.

Lightning Source Inc., a subsidiary of Ingram Industries Inc., provides demand-driven publishing solutions for publishers, storing books and other information electronically and delivering them "on demand" in either traditional printed format or as e-Books in response to orders from booksellers, librarians, and publishers.

According to Bloomberg News, the appeals court noted that last year's ruling misinterpreted On Demand's patent (issued to founder Harvey Ross), and explained that the patent was limited to printing based on direct interaction with customers. The article also noted that "Ross offered to license the technology to Ingram's Book Group unit, a wholesale book distributor," but was rebuffed by Ingram, which "started Lightning Source."

Sale Changes Name of Time Warner Book Group

Last Friday, the sale of the Time Warner Book Group to Lagardere SCA closed as planned. As a result, the U.S. branch of the former TWBG is now officially the Hachette Book Group USA and the UK operation is called the Little, Brown Book Group. The company noted that "further details with regard to logos and any changes to publishing imprint names will be given by the companies themselves in due course."

Lambda Awards Tickets Available

Over 300 booksellers, writers, editors, agents, and readers are expected to gather for the 18th Annual Lambda Literary Awards Ceremony (the "Lammys"), to be held for the first time in Washington, D.C., on Thursday, May 18, at the Human Rights Campaign Headquarters. The reception will begin at 6:00 p.m., and the ceremony will run from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m., with a post-reception at 9:30 p.m. Tickets for the event are $100 until May 1, 2006, and $125 afterwards.

Tickets may be purchased through the Lambda Literary Foundation website, www.lambdaliterary.org, or at Lambda Rising Bookstore, 1625 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, D.C., (202) 462-6969.

Griffin Poetry Prize Announces Shortlist

On April 5, Scott Griffin, founder of The Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry, and trustee David Young announced the Canadian and International shortlist for this year's Griffin Poetry Prize. The prize is awarded annually for the two best books of poetry, including translations, published in English in the previous year.

This year, 441 eligible books from 15 countries around the globe, translated from 20 different languages, were submitted for 2006. Two winners from among seven finalists -- three Canadian and four International -- will be announced on Thursday, June 1, 2006 at the sixth Griffin Poetry Prize awards evening.

For more information and to view the shortlist, go to the Griffin Poetry Prize website.

Students Purchasing More Textbooks Online

According to the latest installment in the Student Watch Campus Market Research series, students are purchasing 23 percent of textbooks over the Internet, either through a college store's web site or another retailer. This is up from 16 percent in 2004. Sponsored by the NACS Foundation, the research arm of the National Association of College Stores (NACS), Student Watch Student Buying Habits: Textbooks and Course Materials takes a close look at students' attitudes, perceptions and buying habits regarding textbooks and course materials.

When asked why they chose to shop for textbooks online, 61 percent of students shared that price was their determining factor, 30 percent chose other as their reason, 21 percent said their friends recommended doing so, and 18 percent said professors recommended shopping online.

The Student Watch survey was conducted at 21 campuses nationwide with more than 16,000 students participating. Student Watch reports are available for purchase through the NACS store online at www.nacs.org.