Baker & Taylor and Lightning Source Announce Alliance

Posted on January 4, 2002

Baker & Taylor, a distributor of books, video and music to libraries and retailers, announced it is adding Lightning Source Inc. to its offering of print-on-demand and order fulfillment services. Lightning Source will print and fulfill book orders for Baker & Taylor and its customers using Lightning's print-on-demand technology and fulfillment services. Lightning Source is a subsidiary of Ingram Industries Inc., which competes with Baker & Taylor in book distribution.

Lightning Source Inc. will provide Baker & Taylor full access to its digital library. Baker & Taylor will increase its selection of titles with the addition of the thousands of titles available through Lightning Source's digital library combined with those print-on-demand titles from its own Replica Books.

``Both Lightning Source and Baker & Taylor share the belief that customers should be able to acquire any of the titles they want, when they want them, wherever the title is needed,'' said Baker & Taylor President & CEO Gary Rautenstrauch. ``We see the addition of Lightning Source as further enhancing our valued customer partnerships.''

``Lightning Source is a vital resource for the industry,'' said Ed Marino, President and CEO of Lightning Source Inc. ``Lightning Source's services, especially its unique one at a time POD technology, provide more book sales across the industry. This new alliance with Baker & Taylor dramatically increases that sales potential and enables libraries, publishers, and retailers to maximize profits while meeting changing customer demand.