Articles

Business Operations · Article | 12.13.23 The Crucial Role of Information Systems in Book Publishing
by María Jesús Aguilo

Whether you’re embarking on your journey to create market-ready books or already have an...

Legal · Article | 08.04.23 Digital Rights Management Revisited
by Kirk Biglione

In the early days of e-books, digital rights management (DRM) emerged as a controversial...

Business Operations · Legal · Article | 01.31.17 Organizational Value
by Deb Vanasse

PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 2017 by Deb Vanasse, Staff Reporter, IBPA Independent Deb...

Distribution · Article | 11.01.16 Lost in Translation: How to Get a Book Translated from English into a Foreign Language
by Lynn Rosen

The IBPA office received the following question. We took the opportunity to compile answers from...

Legal · Article | 09.01.16 Getting the Royalty Treatment
by Juli Saitz & Steve Gillen

The relationship between publisher and author is an interdependent one. If the author...

Legal · Article | 09.01.16 Termination of Book Publishing Rights: An Overview
by Jonathan Lyons; Jesseca Salky

The US Copyright Act of 1976 presents authors and their statutory successors the opportunity to...

Business Operations · Article | 06.02.16 A Crash Course on Royalty Audits
by Juli Saitz; Steve Gillen

In the typical transaction between a book author and a publisher, the author grants to the...

Legal · Article | 01.06.14 Basic Moves for Movie and TV Deals
by Kate Murray; Tad Crawford

No matter how thrilling it seems to have a film or television producer express interest in your...

Business Operations · Article | 10.31.11 Reversion in the Digital Age: Is Out-of-Print Out of Style?
by Steve Gillen

Because not every book is a success and not every successful book has an indefinite shelf life,...

Legal · Article | 09.01.11 Acquiring the Right Rights: Will Your Contract Keep Up with the Markets for Your Books?


When Apple launched its iTunes digital music download business in 2001, few anticipated that it...

Legal · Article | 02.28.03 How to Start Selling Foreign Rights
by Tom Woll

Article updated in August 2024. Just as U.S. publishers are always looking for new books to...

Legal · Article | 11.01.00 Right of Publicity
by Lloyd L. Rich

Introduction The right of publicity is generally defined as an individual's right to control and...

Legal · Article | 08.01.00 What is a "Standard" Royalty?
by Jonathan Kirsch

Question: We are an independent publishing house, and we pay royalties based on a percentage of...

Legal · Article | 11.01.98 Fictional Characters & the Law
by Lloyd L. Rich

On my Web site, I have an article regarding the legal protections provided for a graphic...

Legal · Article | 07.31.98 Subsidiary Rights: Acquisition & Licensing
by Lloyd Rich

The grant of rights clause in a publishing contract is one of the most important clauses because...

Legal · Article | 10.01.97 Electronic Publishing and the Potential Loss of First Serial Rights
by Ivan Hoffman, Publishing Attorney

The Internet offers the publisher and the writer the freedom to post articles to a website, to...

Legal · Article | 07.31.96 The Best Books on Publishing Law and Book Contracts
by John B. McHugh

As a publisher, you need to understand publishing law. If your publishing responsibility is new...

Legal · Article | 06.30.96 Royalty Calculations in Book Contracts
by Ivan Hoffman - Publishing Attorney

We often hear about book royalties in a fashion that is illusory. To discuss a royalty rate...