Gotham Books

What Gotham Books does

Penguin Random House is the world's largest trade book publisher, formed in 2013 through the merger of Penguin Group and Random House and privately held by German media conglomerate Bertelsmann. The company operates 300+ imprints globally — including Gotham Books, Crown, Knopf, Doubleday, Dutton, One World, Penguin Press, Random House Children's Books, Penguin Young Readers, Tundra, and PRH Audio — publishing across adult fiction, literary nonfiction, children's, young adult, and Christian categories in print, ebook, and audiobook formats. The company's offerings also extend to film/TV licensing (Netflix, Amazon MGM Studios), Publisher Services distribution for third-party clients (notably Oni Press), and direct-to-consumer platforms (She Reads Truth, acquired April 2026).

The company serves three primary customer sets: (1) end consumers via global retail (Barnes & Noble, Amazon, indie bookstores, Target, Walmart), digital platforms (Audible, Spotify, Apple Books, Google Play), and libraries; (2) enterprises through content licensing to streaming and film studios; and (3) institutional partners such as the New York Public Library, and third-party publishers via PRHPS. Revenue is generated through one-time book sales, subscription-based audiobook platforms, licensing royalties, and managed distribution services. Go-to-market is sales-led and event-driven, anchored by major author book tours (e.g., John Green's 20-city tour for HOLLYWOOD, ENDING) and supported by PR/earned media across major outlets. 2026 milestones include a record 32 Audie Award nominations for PRH Audio, a Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction, the Women's Prize for Fiction, the Bologna Prize for Best Children's Publishers, and a 1.5 million first-printing commitment for John Grisham's THE FRENCH ILLUSION. The source data does not disclose revenue figures, headcount, or specific AI/ML capabilities.

Name

Gotham Books

Legal name

Penguin Random House LLC

Website

https://global.penguinrandomhouse.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Penguin Random House is the world's largest trade book publisher, operating 300+ imprints including Gotham Books across adult, children's, and Christian publishing in print, ebook, and audiobook formats. It serves consumers via global retail and digital platforms, licenses content to streaming and film studios, and distributes for third-party publishers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Book Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Book Publishers (51313), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAJAAAA

General Trade Publishing (Adult Fiction & Nonfiction)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Book Publishing (Trade & Consumer)

SECONDARYMPAJAAAI

Biography, Memoir & Narrative Nonfiction Publishing

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Book Publishing (Trade & Consumer)

SECONDARYMPAJAAAB

Genre & Category Publishing (Romance, Mystery/Thriller, Sci‑Fi/Fantasy, etc.)

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Book Publishing (Trade & Consumer)

SECONDARYMPAJAAAC

Literary & Classics Publishing

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Book Publishing (Trade & Consumer)

SECONDARYEDAGAFAH

Education Research & Pedagogy Scholarly Publishing

Education/Educational Publishing & Learning Content/Academic & Scholarly Publishing (Journals, Monographs)

Keywords

• Trade book publishing
• Nonfiction publishing
• Book imprint
• Editorial publishing
• Print book publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Trade Book Publishing: Revenue from publishing and selling physical books, ebooks, and audiobooks through retail, wholesale, and direct channels. Primary revenue stream from bestselling titles across adult, children's, YA, and Christian publishing divisions.
2. Audiobook Publishing & Distribution: Revenue from Penguin Random House Audio productions distributed through Spotify, Audible, Apple Books, and other audiobook platforms. Strong performance with 20 titles on Spotify's Best Audiobooks list.
3. Rights & Licensing: Licensing of content for film/TV adaptations (e.g., Andy Weir's PROJECT HAIL MARY film by Ryan Gosling, Emily Henry's PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION Netflix adaptation).
4. Distribution Services: Penguin Random House Publisher Services (PRHPS) provides worldwide sales and distribution for third-party publishers including Oni Press, generating service fees.
5. Christian Publishing: Penguin Random House Christian Publishing Group publishes Christian titles including acquisitions like She Reads Truth (direct-to-consumer platform).

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Gotham Books is an imprint of Penguin Random House that publishes nonfiction trade books across categories including business, history, politics, and current affairs. Operating as part of the world's largest English-language trade publisher, Gotham Books titles are distributed through PRH's global network of retail, library, and digital channels in print, ebook, and audiobook formats. The imprint benefits from PRH's industry-leading editorial, marketing, and distribution infrastructure.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Random House Children's Books: Children's books publishing division including Random House Books for Young Readers, Random House Studio, and related imprints
• Crown Publishing Group
• Penguin Random House Audio
• Penguin Young Readers
• Penguin Random House Christian Publishing Group
• Random House Publishing Group
• Penguin Random House Publisher Services
• Tundra Book Group
• She Reads Truth
• Texas Monthly Press
• Listening Library

Quantifiable outcome

• 20 PRH titles on Spotify's Best Audiobooks of 2026 (So Far)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• Texas MonthlycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 June 2026Penguin Random House and Texas Monthly partnered to relaunch Texas Monthly Press as the book-publishing imprint of the celebrated media company. The new venture will publish books across genres and formats capturing Texas stories, combining Texas Monthly's storytelling legacy with PRH's publishing excellence and national reach.
• NYU Center for PublishingcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 9 June 2026Penguin Random House scholarship recipients Kyle Irish-Hall, Isabella Morgado, and Alondra Salcedo Ponce will participate in NYU's 2026 Summer Publishing Institute. PRH sponsors scholarships for students interested in publishing careers.
• New York Public LibrarycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 May 2026NYPL and Random House Publishing Group announce Kate Medina Fellowship for Literary Narrative Nonfiction to support writers whose projects engage with the Library's collections at the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building.
• We Need Diverse Books (WNDB)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 21 April 2026PRH and WNDB announced 2025 Black Creatives Fund Revisions Workshop winners. PRH has been inaugural sponsor since 2021 and continues support. Fund supports Black fiction writers through revision workshops.
• She Reads TruthcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 13 April 2026Penguin Random House Christian Publishing Group acquired She Reads Truth, an influential direct-to-consumer publisher focused on building a community of women who interact with the Bible. The acquisition builds PRH Christian's DTC platform and underscores investment in Bible resources. Terms not disclosed.
• Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP)coreGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 February 2026PRH and CLMP announced Host Publications as winner of 2026 Constellation Award, receiving $10,000. Award honors independent literary presses championing writers of color. PRH has annually underwritten the award since 2021.
• InkludedcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 February 2026Penguin Random House announced partnership with Inkluded, a nonprofit dedicated to fostering diversity and expanding access within the publishing industry. Collaboration reflects commitment to building a more inclusive and equitable publishing ecosystem.
• Oni PressmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 4 February 2026Penguin Random House Publisher Services (PRHPS) announced multi-year worldwide sales and distribution agreement with Oni Press, the Eisner and Harvey Award-winning publisher. Beginning August 1, 2026, PRHPS will sell and distribute Oni Press frontlist and backlist trade books and comics across all sales channels worldwide.
• We Need Diverse BookscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership includes Creative Writing Awards with inaugural Chinua Achebe Award for Freedom of Expression, supporting diverse voices in publishing.
• KnownmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCreative agency Known partnered with PRH's One World imprint on the SHOT READY campaign by Stephen Curry, winning Cannes Lions Out of Home Breakthrough Award 2025.
• SpotifymajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSpotify features PRH audiobooks on Best Audiobooks lists and playlists, driving audiobook discovery and sales.
• NetflixmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNetflix licenses PRH book adaptations including PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION, driving book sales and brand awareness.
• Amazon MGM StudiosmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFilm adaptation of Andy Weir's PROJECT HAIL MARY produced by Amazon MGM Studios starring Ryan Gosling.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights7 records

Direct peers

• Scholastic: Major children's book publisher and distributor with school-channel reach. Competes most directly with PRH's Penguin Young Readers and Random House Children's Books, particularly in series fiction and educational markets.
• HarperCollins: One of the Big Five English-language trade publishers, owned by News Corp. Directly competes with PRH for bestselling authors, retail shelf space, and audiobook rights across adult, children's, and religious publishing.
• Workman Publishing: Independent trade publisher (now part of Hachette) known for calendar, cookbook, and gift titles. Competes with PRH imprints like Crown and Ten Speed in specialty adult trade categories where PRH is also active.
• Simon & Schuster: Big Five trade publisher, acquired by KKR in 2023. Competes head-to-head with PRH for marquee fiction and nonfiction authors, and operates a comparable multi-imprint trade publishing model across print, digital, and audio.
• Chronicle Books: San Francisco-based independent trade publisher focused on illustrated books, gifts, and children's titles. Direct niche competitor to several PRH imprints in design-led and gift categories.
• Hachette Book Group: U.S. arm of French media group Lagardère and a Big Five peer. Operates Little, Brown and other trade imprints that compete with Crown, Knopf, and Doubleday for the same author and award pipelines.
• Macmillan Publishers: Big Five publisher owned by Holtzbrinck. Competes directly across trade, children's, and educational publishing with a comparable multi-imprint portfolio (Farrar, Straus and Giroux; Henry Holt; St. Martin's).

Emerging players

• Sourcebooks: Independent publisher with strength in nonfiction, children's, and innovative formats (e.g., Put Me In The Story). A rising challenger to Big Five imprints in select categories where it competes with PRH for authors and shelf space.
• Audible: Amazon-owned audiobook platform and PRH Audio's largest distribution partner. While not a publisher in the traditional sense, Audible's exclusive originals and podcast initiatives increasingly intersect with PRH's audiobook business and shape industry economics.

Broad incumbents

• Disney Publishing Worldwide: Disney's book publishing arm, leveraging franchise IP (Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar). Overlaps with PRH in children's trade and graphic novels/comics (where PRH also distributes via Oni Press), but operates as part of a much larger media conglomerate.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/user
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/gotham-books

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries14 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Gotham Books