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Harry Potter absence is curse for Bloomsbury

03/04/2007

British publisher Bloomsbury has revealed its profits in 2006 – a year in which no new Harry Potter book was released – were down by 74 per cent.

Earnings at the London-based group fell to £5.2 million in the last 12 months, compared to £20.1 million in the previous year, buoyed by the release of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, the seventh and last book in JK Rowling's best-selling series, goes on sale on July 21st this year, but today's results put further pressure on Bloomsbury to find a replacement for the boy wizard.

The group's chairman Nigel Newton admitted that the last year had been "challenging", but that a 31 per cent fall in turnover to £74.8 million was in line with December's trading update.

"Turning to the current year and beyond, we have in place a growth strategy which includes expanding on our current author relationships, developing new authors, web-based initiatives, content monetisation, leveraging our geographic presence, and acquisitions, all of which we believe will enhance and strengthen our position as a leading publisher," he insisted.

The six Harry Potter books published so far have sold almost 380 million copies worldwide and been translated into more than 60 languages.

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