Month: October 2010

On Bol.it it is possible to choose from over 90,000 ebooks from Italian and international publishers. The online bookstore offers users the widest selection currently available in our market with more than 5,000 Italian titles made available by the leading publishing companies and distribution platforms in the country. In addition, the catalogue – which features both classics and bestsellers, as well as many new titles published simultaneously with the printed versions – also includes some 85,000 ebooks in English, ranging from great novels to non fiction, children’s books and scientific and professional titles.

To mark the launch of the new ebook catalogue, on Bol.it it is also possible to download for free, in cooperation with Mondadori, the digital version of Il fu Mattia Pascal by Luigi Pirandello.

All of the digital books on the Bol.it store are available in the e-pub or pdf formats and can be used on the most common commercially available tablets and e-readers. A wide selection of the titles in the Italian ebook catalogue is also DRM-free and social DRM, and can therefore also be read on the iPad.

The Bol.it ebook offer operates alongside the already vast catalogue of the internet store, which features a total of 2.5 million products: from ‘traditional’ books, in Italian and English and professional titles, to a large range of multimedia products, including ebook readers, DVD and Blu-Ray films, music, games and gift ideas.

The top ten best selling ebook titles in Italian on Bol.it this week were:

1. Nella testa di Steve Jobs by Leander Kahney (Sperling & Kupfer);

2. La caduta dei giganti by Ken Follett (Mondadori);

3. Inchiesta sul cristianesimo by Corrado Augias and Remo Cacitti (Mondadori);

4. La solitudine dei numeri primi by Paolo Giordano (Mondadori);

5. L’intermittenza by Andrea Camilleri (Mondadori);

6. Non avevo capito niente by Diego De Silva (Einaudi);

7. Il broker by John Grisham (Mondadori);

8. Il bizzarro museo degli orrori by Dan Rhodes (Newton Compton Editori);

9. La strada by Cormac McCarthy (Einaudi);

10. Uomini che odiano le donne by Stieg Larsson (Marsilio).

Guida Cucina, the new Mondadori monthly edited by Laura Maragliano, will hit the newsstands tomorrow, Thursday 28 October, with a host of new ideas for people who love to cook.

This new launch expands Mondadori’s already extensive range of titles in the cookery segment, adding a practical guide designed for readers looking for straightforward and traditional advice and recipes, for everyday lunches and dinners.

For every day of the month, Guida Cucina suggests two easy to prepare menus, with advice about combinations of dishes, accompanied by highly detailed recipes and instructions.

The different sections of the magazine are organised in an original way and published in a small and manageable format (13.9×18.5 cm), at 70 cents. Lunario: provides a mix of news to satisfy readers’ curiosity, such as the Saints days of the month, proverbs, grandmothers’ tips and indications about what to do in the garden and vegetable patch; È tempo di: suggestions based on seasonal produce and their preparation in the kitchen; I giorni: recipes, accompanied by photographs, for everyday lunches and dinners; Le filmate: step-by-step dishes explained with the help of images. And of course l’angolo dei dolci (the desserts corner) and cut-out-and-keep Schede (recipe cards).

The launch of the monthly will be supported by an advertising campaign that will run on the Mediaset TV channels, magazines of the Mondadori Group and with point-of-sale posters.

Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. today announced that it has made available, at both the company’s headquarters and Borsa Italiana S.p.A., the illustrative reports of the directors for the following items on the agenda of the Shareholders’ Meeting called for 11November 2010 (12 November on second calling).

Ordinary part:

• the appointment of directors, prior to the increase in the number of the members of the board of directors; consequent deliberations.

Extraordinary part:

• changes to articles 9, 11, 12, 14, 16, 17, 27 and 28 of the company statute, also in line with the provisions of legislative decree n. 27 of 27 January 2010 (in compliance with EU Directive 2007/36/CE regarding the exercise of certain shareholders’ rights for listed companies) legislative decree n. 39 of 27 January 2010 (in compliance with EU Directive 2006/43/CE regarding the mandatory annual auditing of accounts and consolidated accounts); consequent deliberations and relevant mandates.

The above-mentioned documentation is also available at: http://www.mondadorigroup.com/Governance/Shareholders-meeting.

Canale Mussolini was chosen in the section dedicated to the historical novel in honour of the memory of the founder of the Prize, the writer Marcello Venturi.

The jury motivated the award as follows:

The novel is a fresh and invigorating reconstruction, characterised by an original stylistic and aware approach, that recounts the story of a family of colonists from the Veneto to the new towns established after the draining of the Pontine marshlands, over a number of generations. It paints a highly suggestive picture and manages to translate into a colourful daily language a authentic country saga laced with civic passions and dreams of social redemption against a backdrop of significant historical moment. Added to this is the pathos of personal memory – the author himself comes from a family of colonists – that is able to evoke the atmosphere and characters of events that have for some time been removed from a “politically correct” historical research.

The award ceremony will be held at the Teatro Ariston in Acqui Terme on Saturday 23 October at 5.30 pm, in the presence of the President of the Piedmont Region, Roberto Cota.

In addition to Antonio Pennacchi, during the event, which will be presented by Alessandro Cecchi Paone, prizes will also be presented to Alessandro Orsini, in the historical research category, for his book Anatomia delle Brigate rosse. Le radici ideologiche del terrorismo rivoluzionario (Rubbettino), Marco Patricelli, in the popular history category, for Il volontario (Laterza), and Folco Quilici in the “History on TV” category. The special prize “Testimone del tempo 2010” will be awarded to the Hon. Sandro Bondi, Vittorio Messori and Massimo Ranieri. While Ennio Di Nolfo will receive a Special Prize “for his career.”

Mondadori Retail has opened in Rome, in the heart of the city, a new sales outlet of the Librerie Mondadori chain.

The store, located in the central Piazza della Radio, close to Via Marconi, has a sales area of 800 square metres, where visitors will find an offer of more than 40,000 book titles.

This new Mondadori bookstore will also have an extensive area dedicated to children and younger readers with toys, games and a catalogue of 8,000 titles especially for them.

Alongside the offer of books will be a range of multimedia products with a DVD and Blue-Ray section, while the area called Emporio provides an extensive range of stationery, gifts and gadgets.

The new Piazza della Radio bookstore strengthens the Mondadori Retail network in Italy’s capital city, adding to the existing stores in the Via Appia Nuova and Piazza Cola di Rienzo, and outlets in the Parco Leonardo, La Romanina and Roma Est shopping malls.

PROFILE

Address: Piazza della Radio, 1 – Rome

Opening hours:

From Monday to Saturday from 9 am to 8 pm (On Sunday from 10 am to 2 pm and from 4 pm to 8 pm)

Area: 800 square metres

Product line:

• Books: 40,000
• Children’s books: 8,000
• DVD and Blu-Ray: 5,000
• Emporio: stationery, gifts and gadgets

Customer services:

• MONDADONO Gift Vouchers
• The new loyalty card: MONDADORI CARD

Donna Moderna and the Fondazione Vodafone Italia have launched a new initiative called the “Women & Work Project”, a competition for women which aims to encourage the best social enterprise ideas for women.

There are three areas:

Solidarity. Lending a hand

Entrepreneurial ideas to encourage the employment of women who have suffered violence or who live in disadvantaged socio-economic conditions. Open to women of all ages.

The Web. Let’s get online

Projects linked to the world of the internet or telecommunications and aimed at encouraging the employment of women. Open to women of up to 30 years of age, final-year students or recent graduates.

Home & Work. Getting better organised

Projects to encourage more effective management and conciliate domestic and professional demands in the daily lives of women. Open to women of all ages.

The best projects in each of the three categories will received a prize of €100,000.

How to take part

Application forms can be submitted between 15 October 2010 and midnight on 15 January 2011. In order to request finance you should download the competition notice from the web site www.progettodonnelavoro.it, along with the loan request and business plan forms, register your personal details and submit the completed documents online. A printed copy, along with the attachments, should also be sent to: Fondazione Vodafone Italia, Piazza SS. Apostoli, 81 00187 Rome.

Applications may be made by any women, permanently resident in Italy, who intend to create a business activity with charitable or socially useful aims.

The board of directors of Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. will present a proposal to the Shareholders’ Meeting called for 11 November 2010 (12 November 2010 on second calling) for the appointment following an increase in the number of the members of the board.

Specifically, the Shareholders will be asked to approve the appointment of two non-executive independent directors and one executive director.

The proposed independent non-executive directors will be Carlo Sangalli, the current President of Confcommercio (the Italian retailers’ association), and Angelo Renoldi, professor of economics and business administration at the University of Bergamo.

This increase in the number of non-executive directors is consistent with the ongoing reinforcement of the role and function of independent directors indicated, in particular, by soon to be introduced Consob regulations concerning operations with related parties.

The nominations put forward would also further consolidate and provide additional support for the functions and activities of internal committees (specifically, the Internal Control Committee and the Remuneration Committee) established by the board of directors of Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. as part of the company’s system of corporate governance.

The proposed new executive director is Roberto Briglia, who will bring to the board, as the Group’s Editorial Director, a contribution based on his vast experience in the publishing sector.

The current board of directors, which will remain in office until the AGM for the approval of the Annual Report for the year 2011, is made up by Marina Berlusconi (chairman), Maurizio Costa (deputy chairman and chief executive), Pier Silvio Berlusconi, Pasquale Cannatelli, Bruno Ermolli, Martina Mondadori, Roberto Poli, Mario Resca, Marco Spadacini, Umberto Veronesi and Carlo Maria Vismara.

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The Extraordinary Shareholders’ Meeting of 11 (12) November 2010 will also receive proposals concerning a series of statutory changes concerning compliance with the EU Directive 2007/36/CE relating to the exercise of certain rights by shareholders of listed companies.

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Illustrative reports concerning the items on the agenda of the Shareholders’ Meeting, including professional profiles of the proposed new directors, will be available to the public at the company’s headquarters, Borsa Italiana S.p.A. and on the web site www.gruppomondadori.it (Governance sector) in line with current rulings.

Stefano De Alessandri has been appointed the new general manager of Magazines Italy of the Mondadori Group.

De Alessandri, 50, was born in Milan and has a degree in economics and business administration from Milan’s Bocconi University. He has an extensive and wide-ranging knowledge of the Italian magazine market and has, over the years, also built up considerable managerial experience with important positions at large International publishers.

De Alessandri began his professional life at RCS in 1989, where he held a series of jobs with growing responsibility until 1999, when he moved to Condé Nast as deputy general manager and director.

In 2003 De Alessandri was appointed managing director and general manager of Gruner+Jahr/Mondadori, where he remained until 2005, when he was appointed chief executive and general manager of Hachette Rusconi, the Italian arm of the Lagardére Active group, where he remained until now.

The Mondadori Group wishes to thank Gianni Vallardi for his valuable contribution, made with competence, passion and professionalism during the whole of his time with the company.

Telecom Italia and the Mondadori Group today signed an e-book distribution deal in Frankfurt, at a ceremony attended by Telecom Italia CEO Franco Bernabè and Mondadori Group Deputy Chairman and CEO Maurizio Costa.

As a result of this deal, Bibletstore Italy’s first digital bookshop opens for business today, offering over 1,200 e-books from the Mondadori publishing group.

Eight hundred titles from Mondadori, Einaudi, Sperling & Kupfer and Piemme’s back catalogue will be sold through Telecom Italia’s e-book store (www.biblet.it) along with over 400 new books published simultaneously in paper and electronic form.

Telecom Italia CEO Franco Bernabè declared: “We are particularly pleased about this deal with the Mondadori Group. It is a significant testament to our ability to innovate, which allows us to position the company as a driver of high-tech-led markets. Telecom Italia’s launch of Bibletstore spells the adoption of a new business model that differs from models adopted in other countries. Telecom Italia is developing this model in partnership with publishers, which retain the greatest possible freedom in terms of commercial positioning and setting price points.”

Maurizio Costa, Deputy Chairman and CEO of the Mondadori Group, stated: “The global transition currently underway in the book market, prompted by the uptake of new technologies, is set to have a significant impact also in Italy. Rapid mobile device growth will free reading. People will have more time to explore new content, which will lead to an increase in consumption in step with worldwide trends for increasing demand for information, learning and cultural entertainment. This partnership with Telecom Italia is a significant first step for the Mondadori Group’s leveraging of its publishing assets, which will also become available over the main platforms and devices available on the market.” Mr Costa concluded: “In the near future, our focus on the customer/reader will increasingly become our most precious resource. By sharing expertise with Telecom Italia, we will be able to offer our users an increasingly personalized service.”

Ken Follett’s latest novel, Fall of Giants, is one of the first new Mondadori books available on Telecom Italia’s e-book store shelves. Back catalogue titles from the Group’s publishing imprints include literary masterpieces by Jane Austen and Thomas Mann and recent bestsellers such as Jonathan Franzen’s The Corrections and Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, along with books by leading lights on the contemporary book scene such as Philip Roth and Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and genre literary greats ranging from Agatha Christie to John Grisham. Also available are great thinkers of the past such as Descartes and Seneca, and more recent Italian and international non-fiction, as well as classic children’s books from Hans Christian Andersen’s Fables and the latest generation of children’s heroes such as Geronimo Stilton.

In a world first, the partnership between Telecom Italia and the Mondadori Group will see the launch this Christmas of three subscription-based themed e-book channels: high-brow lit, genre lit (thrillers and romance), and books for children. This new development will completely revolutionize the way readers are offered books. For a set monthly fee, readers will have access to a theme-based reading list. Subscribers can read as many books as they like from this list, one book at a time.

Telecom Italia’s dedicated new e-book platform will carry ePub and PDF format e-books protected by a Digital Rights Management (DRM) system to protect authors’ copyright.

Customers can, starting from today, buy e-books on Bibletstore from their PCs and pay by credit card. In the near future, TIM e-book readers will be launched that offer straightforward and direct access to the e-book store via 3G phone connection. Customers will pay nothing to browse the store, and will only be charged for the books they purchase. Using this method, payments will be accepted by credit card or by charging against credit on the SIM card. E-books may also be purchased and read using Olivetti’s OliPad, a new tablet that is being launched over the next few months, and on other devices that download dedicated applications free of charge.