This just in- it would appear that HarperCollins Publishers, a division of News Corp, will be purchasing Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Sure, that maybe sounds a jumble of companies you don’t care about. But HMH is who owns the publishing rights to ALL of J. R. R. Tolkien‘s works, such as “The Lord of the Rings,” and “The Hobbit.” Considering that, $349 million seems like a steal.
HMH Books & Media employees will join HarperCollins, News Corp’s trade publishing division as part of the deal.
As a reminder, earlier this month, HMH shared the news that they would be publishing a new edition of Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings,” featuring original illustrations by the author. This’ll be the first time since the tome’s original publishing the illustrations will be included in an edition of the story.
President and CEO at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Jack Lynch had this to say about the news:
“At HMH, we are incredibly proud of our legacy, which encompasses nearly 200 years of innovation in trade publishing and education, touching countless teachers, students and readers over time. The divestiture of the HMH Books & Media business allows us to deepen our focus on K–12 education, while also providing our talented consumer publishing colleagues and authors with infrastructure and support to fuel continued growth, champion new stories and continue this legacy.”
