Paper presented at the Third International Conference on Cultural Economics and Planning held April 25-28, 1984 in Akron, Ohio.

The author examines the American book publishing industry with its trend of mergers among book publishers. This trend has been criticized by the Authors Guild as a serious threat to the First Amendment marketplace of ideas, and the Authors Guild would like to see the Antitrust laws invoked to stem the monopolization process. The Association of American Publishers (AAP) argues that both the number of book publishers and title offerings have increased in the last decade despite the merger movement and the industry is in a state of vigorous competition. Includes tables. Includes references.

Paper presented at the Third International Conference on Cultural Economics and Planning held April 25-28, 1984 in Akron, Ohio.