Reader’s Digest is filing for bankruptcy for the second time in three and a half years.

"Under a restructuring agreement supported by Wells Fargo & Co., $465 million of remaining senior notes will all convert to equity," explained CEO Robert Guth to Bloomberg. "The key message here is that we have a lot of confidence in the future of the business based upon the success of the ongoing operational transformation, but we haven’t had as much success with the balance sheet side of it and we need this process to help accelerate that."

"The Chapter 11 process, which will facilitate a significant debt reduction, will enable us to continue to redefine our business by focusing our resources on our strong North America publishing brands, which have shown a new vitality as a result of our transformation efforts, particularly in the digital arena," Guth stated in the press release announcing the restructuring.Continue reading...

Fresh off her global Olympics cameo reading an excerpt of “Peter Pan” to the bazillion viewers who gaped at the London 2012 Games Opening Ceremony, author J.K. Rowling now gets to turn her attention back to her own magic-fueled kid-lit fantasy that ended up spanning a few generations: Harry Potter.

Rowling earlier this year announced she's writing a book for adults, her first foray beyond the Potter Empire that has kept her busy since Harry hit bookshelves back in 1997. Moving on from Potter publisher Bloomsbury with the move, Rowling stated, "The freedom to explore new territory is a gift that Harry’s success has brought me, and with that new territory it seemed a logical progression to have a new publisher. I am delighted to have a second publishing home in Little, Brown, and a publishing team that will be a great partner in this new phase of my writing life."

The last Potter book came out in June of 2007, and the last movie last year, but Rowling can't quit Harry — not just yet.Continue reading...

We have already looked at how Lionsgate studio marketedThe Hunger Games, an $80 million film which reaped an opening weekend box office of $155 million.

Now, a look at how brands are using The Hunger Games to sell themselves. Call it The Hunger Games Brand Extension Games.Continue reading...

The Hunger Games movie opening is expected to break all Hollywood records, even eclipsing the now benign-seeming franchises of Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and Twilight. The first of four planned movies is projected to rake in more than $100 million at the box office this upcoming weekend, with more than $1 million worth of tickets already pre-sold.

The trilogy, written by bestselling author Suzanne Collins, has 24 million copies in print in the U.S. and a built-in fan base that Lionsgate Entertainment has leveraged with unprecedented acumen.

They started traditionally with print ads in newspapers, 50+ magazine cover stories, 3,000 billboard and bus shelter displays, and 80,000 distributed posters. And then came the digital build, creating a series of “little online brushfires to create a box office inferno,” as New York Times reporter Brooks Barnes comments in the video that accompanies his must-read story.

Starting a year ago, the Lionsgate marketing team, led by CMO Tim Palen, leveraged social media to the hilt, building anticipation and participation via Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Tumblr, iPhone games and the promise of live Yahoo streaming at the premiere.Continue reading...

Airbus sees more jet orders held up in emissions row with China.

American Airlines races against clock in bankruptcy court.

Apple faces pressure over app store fraud as fans line up around the world for new iPad.

BCE buys Astral Media for $3 billion, shakes up Canadian media landscape.

Centers for Disease Control launches grisly new anti-smoking ad campaign.

China corporate espionage makes cover of Bloomberg Businessweek.

Cisco increases focus on video delivery with purchase of NDS.

Derek Lam resigns as creative director of Tod's.

Disney pulls in movie production reins after John Carter flops.Continue reading...

Scholastic is going digital. The world's largest children's book publisher is digitizing the bulk of its titles and releasing its first e-reading app, called Storia. While many trade publishers are reaching 20% in digital revenue, the kids’ e-book market is stuck at about 5%, and Scholastic is eager to change all that.

The Storia app, free to download with a beta version available today, offers about 1,300 e-books and multimedia e-books with popular series including “Clifford the Big Red Dog” and “Ready, Freddy!” available in digital format for the first time. It's designed for children ages 3-14 and currently available for PC tablets, with versions for iPad and iPhone and Android devices coming soon.

According to PaidContent, Storia's titles can be sorted by grade level, reading level, age and character/series, and enriched e-books “use word games, story interactions, and animation to deeply draw your young reader in, further developing confidence and critical thinking skills.”Continue reading...

Apple stock price looms large as iPad 3 (aka iPad HD) debut nears, and the company is sued by a firm that has a patent deal with Microsoft.

Boston Beer expands beyond Sam Adams.

BT and TalkTalk lose case against UK's anti-piracy legislation.

Chevy Volt woes may take solace from Toyota Prius.

Dunkin' Donuts brings pork doughnuts and LeBron James to China.

GM and Peugeot cement alliance.

Geneva International Auto Show opens amid slump in European car sales as Volkswagen shows off a Bentley concept SUV.

Jack Daniels opens "drinking school" with Zac Brown Band.Continue reading...

The Disney mouse is going to school…actually pre-school, as the company most famous for animated entertainment shutters its sudser channel and replaces it with Disney Junior.

Disney's new channel, geared to the 2-7 year old age group, is due to launch in 2012. It will replace the now-cancelled SoapNet, a mix of soap opera reruns and supporting original programming, is currently in 75 million homes.

Anne Sweeney, co-chair of Disney Media Networks and president of Disney/ABC Television Group, tells today's New York Times that “This represents the next step in a global preschool strategy that started 10 years ago with the introduction of dedicated channels overseas.”

It's also a sign of the times, as technology has made the network's original purpose obsolete.Continue reading...