Cambridge University Press has made an entry into the Indian market by picking up a 51% stake in Foundation Books Pvt Ltd.
NEW DELHI: UK-based Cambridge University Press (CUP) has made an entry into the Indian market by picking up a 51% stake in its New Delhi-based partner Foundation Books Pvt Ltd.
In the long-term, Cambridge University would like to increase its stake further in the venture, confirmed chief executive of Cambridge University Press Stephen Bourne at a press conference here on Tuesday. He put the current investment made by the company for a 51% stake at around $6 million.
Bourne identified opportunity in the Indian market as the biggest factor for Cambridge University Press to make a foray into the country. While in the UK, there’s hardly any scope to grow any further, he said. “Growth is in such places as India,” he added. China also offers opportunity, but the regulations of that country are restrictive, according to company executives. In China, foreign publishers cannot operate directly.
Besides India, Cambridge University Press is eyeing under-served markets like Gulf countries and even Africa. The manufacturing of books from India will cater to the domestic market and also meet export demands for Cambridge, pointed out Bourne.
Admitting that Oxford University Press is the biggest competition around, the Asia-Pacific managing director of Cambridge Univesrity Press Chris Boughton said that the company’s India venture would aim at becoming the top player in this market.
He, however, did not offer any timeframe for meeting the target. The market size of Oxford is estimated at six times that of CUP’s India partner, Foundation Books, in India, according to industry estimates.
Cambridge University Press, a department of the Univesrity of Cambridge, is one of the largest academic and educational publishers in the world, publishing nearly 2,500 books and over 200 journals annually. These are sold across 200 countries.
The company did not offer any target numbers for the titles to be published from India.
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