From The Financial Times (link): (registration required)
When Mark Kitto received a draft contract late last year from Wiley, the US-listed publishing house, he had every reason to feel confident that his book about doing business in China would soon be released for sale.With China’s rise gripping global business, the British entrepreneur had a topical tale to tell about his battle with the country’s print media regulator for control of a successful listings magazine empire.
Foreign publishers have dropped books in the past for fear of offending Beijing. In 1998, Rupert Murdoch’s HarperCollins ditched an account by Chris Patten, the former Hong Kong governor, of his clash with the Beijing government over the territory’s 1997 handover.
If Mr Murdoch was motivated to curry favour with Beijing, it has paid meagre dividends. The Australian-born mogul has struggled to win approval to expand his businesses in China and last year said Chinese leaders were “paranoid” about the foreign media.
Mr Kitto, who is still locked in a legal dispute in Chinese courts with the GAPP over the trademark of the magazines, said he is “bitterly disappointed” by Wiley’s decision. “I think they are foolish,” he said. “They have missed a great opportunity.”
