Publishers uneasy about apparent collapse of divine and RoweCom subscription agencies.Confusion and apprehension The seizure and arrest of a person who is suspected of having committed a crime. A reasonable belief of the possibility of imminent injury or death at the hands of another that justifies a person acting in Self-Defense against the potential attack. continue to dog publishers who are owed large sums of money by divine Inc.--the subscription agency variously described as "restructuring" "undergoing financial collapse," and "bankrupt"--and its Massachusetts-based subsidiary, RoweCom. Sorting through the few facts and vague press releases yields little new information: * EBSCO Industries EBSCO Industries is a privately held, widely diversified corporation with headquarters in Birmingham, Alabama. It was founded in 1944 by Elton B. Stephens (hence the EBSCO acronym Elton B Stephens COmpany). has indicated an intention to purchase divine's European operations, known as RoweCom Europe, subject to French regulatory approval (NL/NL 12/31/02). * Paula J. Hane wrote in NewsBreaks (www.infotoday.com / newsbreaks), "Orders for subscriptions and payments made by libraries to RoweCom this fall were simply not passed along to the publishers, leaving both libraries and publishers in financial limbo limbo In Roman Catholicism, a region between heaven and hell, the dwelling place of souls not condemned to punishment but deprived of the joy of existence with God in heaven. The concept probably developed in the Middle Ages. and considerable chaos. At that time [December 20, 2002], divine announced that it intended to divest To deprive or take away. Divest is usually used in reference to the relinquishment of authority, power, property, or title. If, for example, an individual is disinherited, he or she is divested of the right to inherit money. the subscription agency." * It's rumored that Swets Blackwell has expressed interest in "acquiring some or all of the RoweCom operations worldwide." * An ad hoc committee ad hoc committee A committee formed with the purpose of addressing a specific issue or issues, which theoretically is disbanded once its raison d'etre is finished of the creditors has been formed--we learned from some newsletter publishers and read about again in Paula Hane's article--"to perform investigations and analyses of the operations and financial condition of RoweCom and its parent corporation, divine, initiate negotiations with RoweCom and divine, and to take such other actions that the Informal Committee may determine are in the best interests of its constituency." The steering committee steer·ing committee n. A committee that sets agendas and schedules of business, as for a legislative body or other assemblage. steering committee Noun has retained the law firm of Jones Day for legal counsel and PricewaterhouseCoopers as financial advisor. To those of you with a stake in the RoweCom and divine settlement, we recommend either joining the ad hoc committee or following its proceedings at adhoccommittee@nyc.rr.com. |
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