In its 75th anniversary year, Frankfurter Buchmesse is staging a five-part digital-and-in-person Frankfurt Rights Meeting. Here are speakers from Frankfurt’s International Rights Directors Meeting of 2009. From left are Zhou Hongli; David Roth-Ey; Annette Beetz; Madeline McIntosh; Thomas Seng; Evan Schnittman; David Campbell; and Tom Turvey. Image: FBM, Fernando Baptista
By Porter Anderson, Editor-in-Chief | @Porter_Anderson
See also: Frankfurter Buchmesse’s Rights Center Reports a Sellout: 584 Tables
Many of Publishing Perspectives‘ international professional readership are familiar with Frankfurter Buchmesse‘s (October 18 to 22) Frankfurt Rights Meeting.
For more than 30 years, the program has been a fixture on the day prior to the official opening of the world’s largest international book publishing trade show, with as many as 200 attendees in place for the program’s presentation of market updates, overviews of trends and developments, and outlooks specifically tailored to literary agents, publishing-house rights directors, and scouts.
In its 75th-anniversary year, Frankfurt is going to leverage some of the digital-production capability it gathered during pandemic-impacted years and produce the Frankfurt Rights Meeting in a new hybrid format, breaking it up into several targeted sessions delivered digitally and concluding in a keynote and reception on-site in Frankfurt.
Artificial intelligence, outlooks on audio, political and social turmoil, book-to-screen development, and more are part of the program announced for the latest iteration of the long-running event.
- Each of four segments is set for a Tuesday from 4 to 5 p.m. CEST / 10 to 11 a.m. ET.
- The final event is scheduled as an in-person conclusion at Frankfurt Book Fair, with networking and a keynote address, from 5 to 7 p.m. CEST.
The plans for this year’s program, in fact, represent a return after three years of the event, and this formatting adjustment makes it possible not only for more attendees to be involved (everyone doesn’t have to be in place physically), but also to present a larger, more comprehensive program without the constraints of a single-day setting.
Program Topics and Speakers
At the 2013 Frankfurt Rights Directors Meeting. Image: FBM, Bernd Hartung
September 5: Digital Session
4 to 5 p.m. CEST / 10 to 11 a.m. ET
Madeline McIntosh
The lmpact of AI on the Rights Business: An Outlook
- Tom Chatfield (moderator), author and technology philosopher
- Madeline McIntosh, former CEO of Penguin Random House USA
- Thomas Cox, managing director, Arq Works
- Duncan Calow, partner, DLA Piper
- Peter Schoppert, director, NUS Press
September 12: Digital Session
4 to 5 p.m. CEST / 10 to 11 a.m. ET
Lance Fitzgerald
Thriving on Change: Current Developments in Audio
- Lance Fitzgerald (moderator), vice-president of content and business development, Penguin Random House Audio
- Galina Lubimaya, rights director, ABP Publishing
- Videl Bar-Kar, vice-president for audio, Bookwire
Bringing audio developments in publishing into focus, this session assesses the current marketplace relative to trends, subscriptions, revenue streams, new formats, and their potential impact on rights sales
September 19: Digital Session
4 to 5 p.m. CEST / 10 to 11 a.m. ET
Hannah Vaughn
From Book to Screen: Exploring the Film (Rights) Market
- Erin P. Hennicke, independent literary scout and founder of BookSmart Literary Scouting
- Hannah Vaughn, literary agent, the Gersh Agency
Spanning both the rights issues related to the streamers as well as more traditional film and television development, this program looks at business models, content requirements, production times and more in the “book to screen” world.
September 26: Digital Session
4 to 5 p.m. CEST / 10 to 11 a.m. ET
Doug Wallace
Licensing in Times of Turmoil: Political Challenges for Rights Sellers
- Carmen Giménez, executive director and publisher, Graywolf Press
- Doug Wallace, managing director, Andrew Nurnberg Associates International
- Hana El Niwairi, rights manager, Cooke McDermid Literary Management
With its particularly interesting title, this session looks at the impact (both professional and personal) on the rights community at times of upheaval involving political issues, sexual identity controversies, diversity and inclusion developments, and more. Publishing Perspectives will moderate this session.
October 17: In-Person Session
5 to 7 p.m.
Networking Reception and Keynote
On the trade show’s eve, a gathering on the Messe Frankfurt, more details to be provided.
Ticketing for the Rights Meeting
Tickets are available for individual sessions or at a special price for all events. The ticket shop is embedded into the Frankfurt Rights Meeting page. Should that not work for you, here is an EventBrite booking link.
More information and ticketing links can be found on Frankfurt’s site.
A shot from Frankfurter Buchmesse in 2017, the ‘Publishers Rights Corner.’ In its 2023 75th anniversary edition, Frankfurt is offering tables in a Publishers Rights Center adjacent to the Literary Agents and Scouts Center. Image: FBM, Marc Jacquemin
More on Frankfurter Buchmesse is here, more on international translation and publishing rights is here, and more on international book fairs is here.