Books are distributed in an unconventional way – Newspaper Kommersant No. 57 (7502) dated 04/04/2023

Russia’s ban on the publication of literature containing LGBT propaganda has led publishers to look for ways to produce and sell books that mention such relationships in neighboring countries. This is how Popcorn Books organizes the sale of its publications in Belarus and Kazakhstan. In the latter, the Panther Books publishing house has been created, which is looking for Russian-speaking authors who are ready to write on LGBT topics. Working in the CIS will allow publishers to indirectly remain on the Russian market: although the sale of such books is prohibited in the country, their purchase is not punished.

A Kommersant source on the book market said that Popcorn Books publishing house (which published, in particular, the book “Summer in a Pioneer Tie”), after the ban on LGBT propaganda in the Russian Federation, is looking for ways to enter the book retail chains of the CIS, including in Belarus and Kazakhstan, “so as not to destroy already printed editions, which is unprofitable in the current situation.” Popcorn Books clarified that “they are already working with partners in the CIS and plan to sell books through local platforms in the future.”

“Kommersant” made sure that the literature from the portfolio of the publishing house can be found on Kazakhstani Meloman, Marwin, Olx and Belarusian AllBook, Oz, KomiksKrama, MyBooks. The books are not yet available in the book networks of these countries, at least Kommersant did not find them in the catalog of Belkniga (the largest network of bookstores in Belarus) and the leading Book City network in Kazakhstan.

Law to prohibit LGBT propaganda, pedophilia and gender reassignment in books, films, advertising and media entered effective December 5, 2022. For its violations, individuals face a fine of up to 400 thousand rubles, officials – up to 800 thousand rubles, and legal entities – up to 5 million rubles.

Even at the drafting stage called concern for publishers: they had to revise the range and plan for the release of new books.

The first administrative case under the new law was filed against Popcorn Books because of the sale of the book Summer in a Pioneer Tie. In February Vedomosti wrote that the owner of the publishing house Denis Kotov wants to sell it. According to Kommersant’s sources, now Eksmo-AST is showing the greatest interest in the purchase, but even the very fact of negotiations is denied there.

New publishing houses are also interested in selling Russian-language fiction dedicated to LGBT relations in the CIS. So, Panther Books will start working in April, follows from the closed Telegram channel of the company. She is looking for Russian-speaking authors who are ready to write works on this topic. The channel reports that the publishing house does not plan to sell books in Russia, and its legal entity is registered in Kazakhstan. In the SPARK-Interfax database, Kommersant found that PantherBooks LLP was established in Almaty on March 7. Anna Gorbenko is listed as the CEO of the company.

Kommersant’s interlocutor on the market calls Popcorn Books’ actions logical: in the CIS people read a lot in Russian and there are no problems in terms of legislation prohibiting LGBT propaganda.

“I don’t think that the CIS is a market comparable to the Russian Federation in terms of volume, but with the right approach, it can provide 30-40% of Russian sales.” At the same time, Kommersant’s source clarifies that logistics costs and margins from local distributors will make books “at least twice as expensive as in Russia.”

However, market participants consider this assessment to be overly optimistic. “The share of sales in Russian-language stores abroad in the structure of our turnover is negligible, I don’t believe in the prospect of cross-border trade under the current conditions,” says Ad Marginem publisher Mikhail Kotomin. It has no plans to enter the CIS market.

Theoretically, books published and sold in the CIS can also reach Russia. Lawyers specify that this does not threaten the buyer. “We have introduced responsibility for the public distribution of materials that justify LGBT people. If the user simply bought a book in the CIS for himself, there is no liability,” explains Maksim Martyanov, lawyer for the Alfa ICA. But, the lawyer emphasizes, if the book is then presented at an exhibition or excerpts from it are read publicly, for example, during the “kvartirnik”, administrative responsibility arises.

Julia Yurasova