HarperCollins recorded a nine per cent rise in revenue to $582 million in the three months to September 30, the first quarter of its fiscal year 2027, parent company News Corp reported, per publishersweekly.com.
EBITDA climbed 29% to $79 million, helped by the absence of a $13 million write-off related to the collapse of distributor Baker & Taylor that hit the previous year.
News Corp attributed the performance to robust demand for physical and digital books in the general trade and children’s categories. Titles that performed strongly included Ann Patchett’s Whistler, Daniel Silva’s Ransom and R.F. Kuang’s Taipei Story.
Digital sales increased 6% year on year, supported by a 13% rise in audiobook revenue that the company linked to its partnership with Spotify and efforts to improve the profitability of listening. Backlist titles accounted for 66% of consumer revenues, up from 65% a year earlier.
HarperCollins was one of three News Corp businesses that collectively delivered solid results amid volatile economic conditions, chief executive Robert Thomson said in a statement on November 5. Free cash flow was weaker in the quarter because of the timing of revenue collections and higher inventory levels built up ahead of the holiday season in response to ongoing supply-chain concerns.
Chief financial officer Lavanya Chandrashekar said the inventory increase was intended to protect the company’s ability to deliver a strong holiday period. She expressed confidence that the group would generate robust free cash flow for the full year.
Thomson also addressed artificial intelligence, noting that News Corp is both defending its intellectual property against AI companies and exploring ways the technology could improve products and cut costs. The company expects to receive its share of Anthropic’s $1.5 billion settlement in a copyright case brought by authors. Thomson said publishers still hold “serious concerns” about Anthropic following its October 26 IPO filing, and News Corp continues legal action against Perplexity and Brave over copyright issues.
He described the group’s approach as a “woo-and-sue strategy,” stating it would not tolerate abuse of its intellectual property or the undermining of creative value. Thomson added that the company is also targeting those who knowingly purchase purloined content.
On audiobooks, Thomson said AI could lower production costs and enhance sophistication as Spotify and Audible experiment with the technology. He pointed to potential benefits including more varied voices, sound effects and cost-effective translations into multiple languages for both text and audio, which could expand audiences and revenue.
- Featured image courtesy HarperCollins