OTHER NEWS - May 28, 1994

Booksellers Group Sues Publishers: The American Booksellers Assn. filed an antitrust lawsuit against five publishers, claiming they discriminate against small bookstores and favor large chains. The trade group, which represents 4,552 bookstores across the country, said publishers offer better terms to chains and warehouse buying clubs. The group filed the suit in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia against Houghton Mifflin Co., Hugh Lauter Levin Associates Inc., Penguin U.S.A. Inc., Rutledge Hill Press Inc. and St. Martin’s Press Inc. The association, whose annual convention begins today in Los Angeles, said it initiated the litigation after a yearlong probe it conducted into alleged “discriminatory secret deals and illegal practices on the part of the publishers.”