Marvel Signs Mass Market Book Deals

Posted on February 11, 2005

Marvel Enterprises, Inc. has entered into major licensing agreements with four publishing houses: DK Publishing, HarperCollins, Meredith Books and Simon & Schuster's Pocket Books. The agreements were announced by Tim Rothwell, President of Worldwide Consumer Products and Bruno Maglione, President of Marvel International. The agreements will bring Marvel characters to adult novelizations, children's fiction, nonfiction compendiums, as well as pre-school novelty formats and picture and sound storybooks. Initial products from these new licensees will be available at retail in first quarter 2005.

"The foundation of the Marvel legacy is in the richness of our characters and our storytelling established through our core Marvel Comics division. The publishing marketplace, therefore, remains one of the most important and impactful avenues to capture new and existing fans and keep them immersed in our character base," said Tim Rothwell, Marvel Enterprises' President Worldwide Consumer Media Group.

DK Publishing will develop a line of children's and all-age nonfiction titles in their illustrative style and under the publisher's best-selling "Ultimate Guides" series. DK's initial lines will spotlight Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, Iron Man, X-Men and The Avengers.

HarperCollins will create movie tie-in books for several upcoming Marvel feature film events including this summer's Fantastic Four, X-Men 3 (May 2006 theatrical release) and Spider-Man 3 (May 2007 theatrical release). Products will target children ages 5-12 and will include junior novelizations, picture story books, chapter books and manga story books in addition to coloring and activity titles.

Simon & Schuster's Pocket Books will launch a series of adult paperback novels spotlighting new adventures of several classic Marvel superheroes including Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, X-Men, Wolverine and Marvel Ultimates.

Meredith Books will develop and publish a portfolio of children's book products ranging from sound storybooks and coloring books, to picture story books. The products will feature many popular Marvel characters such as Spider-Man, The Fantastic Four, The Incredible Hulk, X-Men, Iron Man, and Captain America, as well as the pre-school property Spider-Man & Friends.

Marvel's operations are focused in four areas: entertainment (Marvel Studios), licensing, publishing and toys (Toy Biz). Marvel facilitates the creation of entertainment projects, including feature films, DVD/home video, video games and television based on its characters and also licenses its characters for use in a wide range of consumer products and services including apparel, toys, collectibles, snack foods and promotions. Marvel's characters and plot lines are created by its publishing division.