IUniverse

iUniverse
Parent companyAuthor Solutions (2007)
Founded1999
Country of originUnited States
Headquarters locationBloomington, Indiana
Publication typesBooks
ImprintsWriters Club Press
Official websiteiuniverse.com

iUniverse, founded in October 1999, is an American self-publishing company based in Bloomington, Indiana. The company has been owned by Author Solutions since 2007. Author Solutions has been owned by Najafi Companies since 2015.

History

iUniverse focuses on print-on-demand self-publishing and a service the company refers to as "assisted self-publishing" which critics say is indicative of vanity press since authors are asked to pay from US$400 to $15,000 for additional services. Soon after they were founded, Barnes & Noble purchased a 49% stake in the company. As part of the agreement, Barnes & Noble offered select iUniverse titles both in their online bookstore and at their physical stores.

In 2004, Amy Fisher's memoir, If I Knew Then, about serving seven years in prison on first-degree aggravated assault charges for shooting Mary Jo Buttafuoco, became the best-selling book in iUniverse's history, selling more than 32,000 copies up to 2004. According to a 2005 Publishers Weekly article, out of the more than 18,000 titles published by iUniverse until 2004, only 83 had sold at least 500 copies and only 14 titles had been sold through physical Barnes & Noble stores.

In September 2007, iUniverse was purchased by Author Solutions, the parent company of hedge fund-owned rival AuthorHouse. A year later, in 2008, iUniverse operations moved from Lincoln, Nebraska to the Author Solution's headquarters in Bloomington, Indiana. In 2015, Author Solutions was sold to The Najafi Companies, a private-equity firm.

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Abourezk, Kevin (January 22, 2008). "iUniverse to move to Indiana". Lincoln Journal Star.
  2. ↑ Shey, Brittanie (October 12, 2011). "Oprah of the Piney Woods". Houston Press. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  3. ↑ Coker, Mark (January 7, 2015). "2014 Book Publishing Industry Predictions — Increased Competition Between Traditional Publishers and Indie Authors". Huffington Post. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  4. ↑ Sarkar, Samita (2016). "On Vanity Presses, True Self-Publishing, and One Author's Tenacity". Huffington Post. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  5. ↑ Tugend, Alina (July 29, 2011). "Proliferate, Easing the Bar to Entry". The New York Times. Retrieved November 30, 2016.
  6. ↑ Clampet, Elizabeth (November 2, 1999). "Barnes & Noble Takes Stake in iUniverse". internetnews.com. Retrieved February 22, 2010.
  7. 1 2 "iUniverse by the Numbers". Publishers Weekly. May 16, 2005. Archived from the original on April 12, 2009.
  8. ↑ Milliot, Jim (September 9, 2007). "AuthorHouse acquires iUniverse". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on May 4, 2009.
  9. ↑ Trachtenberg, Jeffrey A. (September 7, 2007). "Author Solutions to Acquire Rival Self-Publisher iUniverse". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 21, 2026.
  10. ↑ Dealbook (September 7, 2007). "Author Solutions Signs Deal for Rival Publisher". DealBook. Retrieved October 21, 2026.
  11. ↑ Schwartz, Meredith. "Penguin Parent Buys iUniverse Owner". Library Journal. Retrieved October 21, 2026.
  12. ↑ Milliot, Jim. "Author Solutions Sold to Private Equity Firm". PublishersWeekly.com. Retrieved October 21, 2026.