BTW News Briefs

Scholastic Announces Potter Paperback Pub Date

On February 2, Scholastic announced that it would release the paperback edition of J.K. Rowling's fifth Harry Potter novel, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, on Tuesday, August 10, 2004, at a suggested retail price of $9.99 and 896 pages. In the U.S. alone, the hardcover edition of Potter V sold 5 million copies in the first 24 hours, making it the fastest selling book in publishing history. Rowling's U.K. publisher, Bloomsbury, will release the paperback edition of the fifth Potter novel on July 10.

January Retail Sales Decline, Book Sales Increase

On February 12, the Commerce Department reported that retail sales decline by 0.3 percent in January, due to a steep decline in new-car buying, as reported by the Associated Press. This is the first sales decline since September. When auto sales are removed from the data, it shows that all other merchants' sales rose by 0.9 percent in January. The sales of books, music, and sporting goods increased by 1.6 percent last month, which is the largest increase since August and better than the 0.6 posted in December, the AP article noted.

NYC Passes Anti-Patriot Act Resolution

On February 4, the New York City Council joined a long list of cities nationwide that have approved resolutions formally opposing the USA Patriot Act, which expanded the investigative powers of law enforcement agencies, the Washington Post reported. The NYC resolution criticizes the Act for allowing infringements on privacy rights, the Post reported, and noted that "the council requested that Congress deliver periodic reports accounting for the information and records on New Yorkers the federal government has culled under the Patriot Act, but the measure has no means to enforce the request."

New York State Asks Residents a Taxing Question

In a change that is getting much local media attention in New York State, on line 56 of this year's New York State income tax form, the Department of Taxation and Finance asks residents to declare "sales or use tax" for all their out-of-state purchases the previous year. The move was made as an attempt by the state to raise millions in uncollected revenue by taxing out-of-state sales, including those made via the Internet, the New York Times reported recently. Lawmakers estimate that New York State lost $1 billion annually by not collecting online sales taxes and a Senate report predicted that line 56 could generate in the neighborhood of $25 million annually, the Times noted.

Bookpeople Wholesale Unit to Close on March 15

West Coast wholesaler, Bookpeople, has announced that it is winding down operations and plans to close by March 15. The company has been trying to stay afloat since filing for Chapter 11 last August and has been unable to find an investment partner or buyer who could provide financing to keep Bookpeople open. Bookpeople's subsidiaries, Words Distributing Company and Bookpeople Fulfillment, will continue to do business from the Oakland warehouse. Bookpeople will accept orders up to March 15 and returns until March 5.

Susan Kent Named MSIBA Executive Director

The Mid-South Independent Booksellers Association recently announced the hiring of Susan Kent, owner of Treehouse Readers bookstore in Kingwood, Texas, as its new executive director. Kent will replace former executive director Andy Jackson. She will assume her new position on March 1.