Re: Yes Stephen king made a small profit

[ANGRECO@aol.com]

Re King and profits:

In all honesty, King would have made significantly more money issuing this
as a traditional book.

All of the terms and conditions of his contract with Simon & Schuster have
not been released publicly, but it appears "likely" he would have received
an advance in the neighborhood of $3-5 million plus 50% of all profits
generated by the book.

Assuming a suggested list price of $25 and a discount rate in the 42%-48%
range, the publisher would have netted approximately $13 per copy (at a
48% discount rate). Assuming a sell through of approximately 1 million
copies, his share would have been substantial on the hardbound level.
Paperback sales would have generated more revenues for the publisher and
King. Foreign sales and sub rights would be additional. It is likely King
holds all film rights, which could be substantial. For example, Grisham's
last book sale to Hollywood generated approximately $8 million for Grisham
(who holds all film rights).

Of course, King has a sizable back list, and this book could sell copies
for years if not decades. His fans are quite loyal.

Under the terms of King's previous contract with Viking-Penguin, his
advance was approximately $25 million and a percentage of the royalties.

Al Greco
Fordham University