I think it's a great attempt to popularize the book business, and boy, do we need it. It's a good thing, as we try to expand our readers, to put the public into this. I think it's important to have the consumer not only buy the book, but confirm that this is the best book of the year.

They have a very fast growing variable annuity business that has not even been recognized in the market place, yet, ... It's just perceived as a stodgy property and casualty company.

So the question is, do corporate executives, provided they stay within the law, have responsibilities in their business activities other than to make as much money for their stockholders as possible? And my answer to that is, no they do not

In this business, you have to have good products, good partners, be nimble as a company, financially sound and hungry to innovate, otherwise you're not going to grow your business,

When you have an author of the caliber of Bernard Cornwell, one of the world's top historical novelist, it's very gratifying to publish him on a global basis giving him the prominence he deserves. We expect this important deal, in conjunction with the new TV mini-series, will bring him even greater success around the world.

In keeping with our commitment to be a 21st century publisher, our content needs to be available in a digital format. We have a vision of the future and this is a significant step towards achieving that vision. We are putting our digital house in order so that we are prepared to offer consumers book content in new ways and with a variety of partners. Once the content is digitized and available in a robust database, the possibilities of what can be done are endless. The world we live in today is increasingly technology driven. HarperCollins is going to move with the technology.