Frankfurt, 29 September 2017 – Frankfurt digital services provider Bookwire is expanding its business segment with the purchase of a major distribution platform. The company is taking over Brazilian market leader Distribuidora de Livros Digitais (DLD) at 100%, and integrating its business operations into “Bookwire Brasil LTDA”. This step makes Bookwire by far the leading supplier for eBook distribution in Brazil.
DLD was established in 2010 as a consortium of six large Brazilian publishers* and most recently organised distribution and marketing of around 10,000 eBooks.
Bookwire GmbH and Brazilian branch Bookwire Brasil LTDA are taking over 100% of the consortium today, 29 September 2017, and integrating the business segment into the Bookwire infrastructure established at the location. All catalogues that DLD has looked after so far will be presented in all eBook channels via Bookwire’s distribution platform “Bookwire MACS”. All those involved have agreed to maintain silence about the purchase price.
“The takeover of DLD is now just the next logical step in our growth strategy”
Jens Klingelhöfer, CEO of Bookwire GmbH: “In the eBook segment, Brazil is an immensely important market with very high digital growth rates. We have been active in Brazil since we began our Spanish and Latin American expansion in 2013, and we have constantly expanded our business segment, including our own company structure. The takeover of DLD is now just the next logical step in our international growth strategy, with which we intend to globally expand our leading role in the area of digital publishing.”
The purchase of DLD was prepared over several months by the shareholder publishers and Bookwire: “We are particularly glad that the takeover went ahead with such good cooperation with the DLD founders. Our objective is to help the former DLD owners up to the next “eBook level” with all of our services and technologies. We therefore provide long-term support for the successful expansion of their digital publishing business with our innovative solutions, as well as our team of local and international eBook experts”, adds Klingelhöfer on the conclusion of the purchase.
Marcos da Veiga Pereira, Sextante partner and DLD Board Director also comments on the acquisition: “Digital books are an opportunity and still have a long way to go in Brazil, but we publishers need to focus on what we do best, creating and promoting our content. Because of that, after writing a digital success story with DLD, it made sense for us to entrust our catalogues to Bookwire.”
DLD merges with Bookwire Brasil
With the takeover, the DLD brand will gradually be taken from the Brazilian market – the publishing clients will quickly be connected to the Bookwire MACS platform, through which distribution in the various shops will start immediately. The publishers also have access to all of the platform features, such as in-book promotion or the innovative Bookwire Analytics tools for detailed monitoring of eBook sales, price campaigns or analysis of reader target groups and activities.
Marcelo Gioia, Managing Director Bookwire Brasil LTDA: “For Bookwire Brazil, the takeover of DLD is an acknowledgement of our passionate and successful work during the past four or so years. By looking after more than 240 publishers and 16,000 distributed titles, we have already been able to prove the quality of our services on the market. The integration of the DLD business now impressively shows that Brazil’s leading publishers are very confident that, with us, they have the right partner by their side for the demanding challenges of the digital future.”
Bookwire is now an international market leader
With the takeover of DLD, Bookwire GmbH is further consolidating its position as one of the leading digital services providers in the eBook and audiobook distribution and marketing segment. The purchase has now made the company the market leader in Brazil. The business, one of the most successful start-ups in the book industry (est. 2009), has already been deliberately focussing on international markets for years — strategically managed from the head office in Frankfurt am Main and operationally managed by branches in Brazil and Spain.
“The digital world knows no boundaries — so neither does our business. We strive to offer our customers the best distribution platform, with the best distribution network, in the world, and we have now made another important step in that direction”, concludes Klingelhöfer.
