One of the two pre-eminent LDS publishing houses, Bookcraft Inc., has been acquired by the relative upstart of the LDS publishing world, Infobases Inc.
Infobases, which started operations in 1990, announced Tuesday the acquisition of Bookcraft, which traces its roots to 1942, when J. Kenneth Orton, former manager of the LDS Church's Improvement Era magazine, started the company.Terms of the transaction between the privately held companies were not released. Officials say jobs probably won't be lost.
Alan C. Ashton, a longtime investor and developer of Word-Perfect, was named chairman of the new company's board of directors.
Along with Deseret Book, Bookcraft has been the primary source for LDS books authored by general authorities and other general officers of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Among the company's offerings are the perennially popular "Mormon Doctrine," by Elder Bruce R. McConkie, "Doctrines of Salvation," by President Joseph Fielding Smith and "The Miracle of Forgiveness," by President Spencer W. Kimball.
More recently, the company has enjoyed a huge success with the "Work and the Glory" series by Gerald N. Lund. The multivolume fiction series is based on LDS Church history.
Bookcraft publishes an average of 40 to 50 books each year primarily for the LDS market. More recently, the company had also produced tapes and computer products, according to Cory Maxwell, Bookcraft's editorial manager.
Infobases already had a relationship with Bookcraft as it had repackaged many of Bookcraft's publications in its CD-ROM, "LDS Collector's Library." The company also produces the popular "LDS Family History Suite" on CD-ROM, which contains data on early Mormon pioneer genealogy and LDS Church history.
"Today's announcement creates a marriage of tremendous possibilities. Bookcraft's outstanding content, coupled with Infobases' elec-tronic publishing know-how, will allow us to produce new and exciting products in print and electronic form," said Bradley D. Pelo, president and CEO of Infobases.
Pelo, who will also become president and CEO of Bookcraft, said he predicts expansion of Bookcraft operations and no diminishing of the company's emphasis on books. At the same time he said LDS consumers will see enhanced CD-ROM products and a greater presence of content on the World Wide Web.
Bookcraft will also move into a new building near I-215 and 2100 South, only a few blocks from the firm's current location.
Infobases has been refocusing its publishing operations to the LDS market. It has returned to its original name, jettisoning its former name of Western Standard Publishing, and has sold Utah Business magazine. It has retained ownership of Ancestry and Genealogical Computing magazines, which are directed at those interested in genealogy.
"Ashton will take an active role in fostering the company's role by working closely with the management team as they chart the future direction of the company," a news release said.
G. Franklin Lewis, former chairman and CEO of the Times Mirror Higher Education Group, was named as vice chairman. Lewis recently purchased Utah Business from Infobases.
"Combining the two companies' expertise, vision, brand strength and loyal customer bases will allow us to explore additional values for providing faith-promoting media to the Latter-day Saint community," Ashton said.