FY2023 first quarter service performance scores covering Oct. 1 through Nov. 4 included: *First-Class Mail: 92.3 percent of First-Class Mail delivered on time against the USPS service standard, a slight decrease of 0.9 percentage points from the fiscal fourth quarter. *Marketing Mail: 94.2 percent of Marketing Mail delivered on time against the USPS service standard, a slight decrease of 0.6 percentage points from the fiscal fourth quarter. *Periodicals: 86.9 percent of Periodicals delivered on time against the USPS service standard, consistent with performance from the fiscal fourth quarter.

Total revenues across all categories for July 2024 were up 18.1% as compared to July 2023, coming in at $1.3 billion. Year-to-date revenues were up 7.6%, at $7.6 billion for the first seven months of the year. In terms of physical paper format revenues during the month of July, in the Trade (Consumer Books) category, Hardback revenues were up 25.5%, coming in at $221.4 million; Paperbacks were up 17.9%, with $271.4 million in revenue; Mass Market was down 14.0% to $11.2 million; and Special Bindings were up 13.8%, with $19.4 million in revenue.

The question about who will succeed Thomas Rabe as chairman and CEO of Bertelsmann has been answered with the announcement that Thomas Coesfeld will fill those roles when Rabe steps down at the end of 2026, ending his 15-year tenure heading the conglomerate whose holdings include Penguin Random House. Thomas Coesfeld along with his brother, Cartsen, had been seen has the favorites to succeed Rabe. Both men are the grandsons of Bertelsmann patriarch Reinhard Mohn and have served in various capacities within Bertelsmann’s various companies. Thomas is currently head of Bertelsmann’s music business, BMG. (Among the jobs Cartsen has held was head of DK). In making the announcement of Coesfeld’s appointment, Christoph Mohn, chairman of the Bertelsmann supervisory board, said the selection “marks a generational change in Bertelsmann’s leadership.” Thomas is 35 and Cartsen is 38.