When people watch series on the Internet, they have less time to read. You might think that’s bad for book publishers. At Bastei Lübbe, a streaming series has now proven to be a blessing.
Thanks to the “Maxton Hall” film adaptation on Amazon Prime Video, the book publisher Bastei Lübbe has grown strongly. Sales grew by 15.7 percent to 26.4 million euros in the first quarter of the 2024/25 financial year, which began in April, the Cologne-based company announced. The operating result (EBIT) increased by three quarters to 3.7 million euros (previous year’s quarter: 2.1 million).
A large part of this growth is due to the series “Maxton Hall – The World Between Us”, which is based on the novel “Save Me” by author Mona Kasten. The heartbreak drama is about a poor schoolgirl who falls in love with a boy from the filthy rich upper class. His father is strictly against the relationship.
“The series on Amazon Prime Video gave us a big boost: people wanted to read the book too – and also the second and third parts of the novel series,” says publishing director Soheil Dastyari to the dpa. Author Kasten’s books are published by the so-called community publishing brand Lyx, which makes intensive use of social media. The target audience is young people between the ages of 16 and 26. At Lyx, sales rose by 72 percent in the spring quarter.
“Maxton Hall” also has a positive effect on the publisher because it receives money for the film rights. “We do benefit from that, but the greater part of this growth effect is due to visibility,” says Dastyari. “People who have seen a series want to read the original novel and thus come into contact with us, after which they sometimes also buy other books by the author or by other authors from our publisher.”
Good prospects
Dastyari stresses that the company would have grown well even without the special Maxton Hall effect. “We are developing positively across the board; in addition to Lyx, audiobooks are also a growth driver.” Bastei Lübbe’s management describes the general economic environment as difficult, with global crises such as the war in Ukraine leading to stress and uncertainty.
However, company boss Dastyari is confident that his company will continue to grow in the future despite the economic headwinds. “When shopping, you might forgo an expensive sweater, but you won’t forgo a book that moves you and lets you forget the dark clouds of world politics and the economy for a moment.”
Novel booklets only a side business
In addition to books, Bastei Lübbe also sells novelettes (“Chief Physician Dr. Holl”, “Jerry Cotton”, “Bergkristall”), but only as a minor sideline: Of the 26.4 million euros in group sales in the spring quarter, only 1.7 million came from novelettes. That was 0.1 million less than in the same period last year. “That is in line with expectations,” says Dastyari.
Source: Stern
