A US judge has blocked the $2.2bn planned merger of Penguin Random House, the world’s largest book publisher, with rival Simon & Schuster.
The government identified bestselling titles that were the subject of bidding wars between PRH and Simon & Schuster, and argued that the competition had driven up what the author was paid. Executives from PRH and Simon & Schuster argued that bidding wars between the two companies were infrequent, and claimed that the merger would actually benefit writer pay, because it would lead to savings and allow them to spend more on books.
Penguin Random House lawyer Daniel Petrocelli, who defeated the government in a previous merger challenge, argued during the trial that the deal would have “enormous benefits” for readers and authors alike since the imprints, or brands, owned by the two giants would continue to compete against each other.