‘Field & Stream’ Digitizes Its Magazine (mediapost.com)

Commenting on the results, Chief Executive Robert Thomson said: “We have begun Fiscal 2025 robustly, with record first quarter revenue, strong net income and record first quarter profitability. Revenue rose 3 percent year-over-year to $2.58 billion, while our net income jumped 148 percent to $144 million. Total Segment EBITDA surged 14 percent to $415 million, and our EPS were 21 cents compared to 5 cents in same quarter last year. That we have achieved these record first quarter results in macro-conditions which are far from auspicious is compelling evidence of the successful transformation of News Corp over the past decade. Meanwhile, the just-completed election has highlighted the importance of trusted journalism in a media maelstrom in which some journalists mistake virtue signaling for virtue. Artificial intelligence recycles informational infelicities and it is critical that journalistic inputs have integrity, which is why our partnership with OpenAI is so crucial and why we intend to sue AI companies abusing and misusing our trusted journalism. Dow Jones and the New York Post have started proceedings against the perplexing Perplexity, which is selling products based on our journalism, and we are diligently preparing for further action against other companies that have ingested our archives and are synthesizing our intellectual property.”

The nearly 50-year-old kitchenware retailer, which filed for bankruptcy in July and said it would close over 50 of its 121 stores, has been sold for nearly $89 million to a joint venture between e-commerce investment firm CSC Generation and Marquee Brands LLC. The sale, which is still subject to bankruptcy court approval, was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. According to court documents, the joint venture plans to keep at least 50 Sur La Table stores open.

The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today released the StatShot Annual report covering the calendar year 2022, estimating that the U.S. book publishing industry generated $28.10 billion industry-wide during the year, a decline of 2.6% as compared to 2021. In spite of the slight decline, total industry revenue remained 8.6% higher than the $25.87 billion total recorded for the year of 2019, just prior to the onset of the pandemic. “During the year the publishing industry continued to show considerable resilience, with total revenues still above pre-pandemic levels,” commented Syreeta Swann, Chief Operating Officer, Association of American Publishers. “The fact that the five-year trend also shows consistent growth suggests that the industry is well positioned to weather a challenging economic environment and an evolving marketplace over the long haul.”