Launch of Filéas, an interprofessional book structure unique in the world

This time, it’s launched. The Filéas company (for Fthey ofInformations Libraires, ANDpoured out, AauthorS), dedicated to monitoring book sales and serving the inter-professional sector, is created. Eight major players in the book industry (read below) signed the statutes of the SAS “on mission” this Friday, December 20.

Supported by the National Publishing Union (SNE), with the support of independent booksellers and author representatives (of the SLF, the Permanent Council of Writers and the Society of Men of Letters in particular), and supported in part by the Sofia and public funds, Filéas aims to provide authors and publishers with reliable data on the sales of their works weekly from April, then daily from the end of 2025.

Unprecedented transparency for authors

« I don’t know of any equivalent currently in the world. » enthuses Renaud Lefebvregeneral director of the SNE, who recognizes: “ We were late on the subject but from now on we’re getting ahead ».

Around the table for the launch of the structure whose board of directors will be chaired by Alban Cherry Treerepresentative of the SNE and general secretary of Editions Gallimard, are members of numerous inter-professional organizations. “ We are relying on a solid base of representatives of the book inter-profession to open this new service which will be dedicated to the provision of global sales data per book, all points of sale combined. explains to Weekly Books the latter. “ The booksellers are playing the game, others will come, and we can be grateful to them. This is the meaning of the story. »

The secure platform will rely on proven tools, with “ an ad hoc structure », specifies Harriet Seegmullerdirector and currently the only employee of the structure. GfK will provide a consolidated and extrapolated weekly feed at the launch of the platform, covering chains, hypermarkets and independent bookstores.

This flow will subsequently be enriched by daily data from the Bookstore Observatory (a system powered by feedback from independent booksellers via Alire and the SLF). A partnership with ADELC, chaired by Antoine Gallimardwill also be implemented. “ With GfK and bookseller flows, we cover almost the entire market, even if some sales still escape the radar”summary Matthew de Montchalinpresident of Alire, the Association of computerized bookstores and users of electronic networks. The system will also be open to any player in the sector who agrees to provide their data. Librairie Mollat ​​has already indicated that it will join the system.

To establish your benchmark “ which will be constantly evolving », assures Harriet Seegmuller, Filéas will also rely on data from the FEL (Exhaustive Book File) and the author database of Electre (belonging, like Weekly Booksat the Cercle de la Librairie).

A company with a mission

In order to signify the general interest dimension of this project and its deeply interprofessional character, a mission committee (composed of equal representatives of the authors’ colleges, publishers, booksellers and institutional partners – Sofia and public authorities) will guarantee respect and for the proper conduct of its missions. “ The presidency of the committee, rotating every two years, will be initiated by the author college », promises Harriet Seegmuller who specifies that “ this committee must meet at least twice a year “. At its launch, the structure has 700,000 euros of share capital and plans “ to break even within five years », assures Renaud Lefebvre.

A global indicator on the flow of stocks in bookstores for publishers

If the weekly sales data offered will not revolutionize the daily lives of publishers who already have access to GfK, the dailies will offer them an indication of the rate of flow of stocks in bookstores, which is an innovation. “ This will allow publishers to quickly identify works that require reprinting », explains the general director of the SNE, recalling the general principle of anonymization of points of sale.

Publishers will have access to this portal with, as for each user, a view of their works only. Unlike authors for whom the service will be free, publishers will pay a subscription whose pricing is still under study, but the cost, probably proportional to the catalog, should allow all structures to be able to get involved », says Renaud Lefebvre.

A major step forward despite challenges

Filéas is the result of hard work and significant concessions between actors with often divergent interests. Matthieu de Montchalin recalls that the last attempt failed due to lack of consensus. “ This time, we chose to focus on a first stage of the rocket. Everyone agrees, and that’s already huge. »

The project was also designed to optimize costs and rely on trusted third parties. By capitalizing on existing infrastructures, such as Dilicom for data collection, Filéas limits costs, while ensuring data security. “ We transmit our figures free of charge, but we need guarantees on their reliability and confidentiality”insists Matthieu de Montchalin.

Crucial issues for the future

For the industry, Filéas represents more than a simple technical tool. It lays the foundations for a new collaborative dynamic, where transparency could become a strategic lever. “ Filéas is a starting point, not an end in itself », insists Matthieu de Montchalin.

Ultimately, the platform could integrate other functionalities, such as regional analyzes or data on salon sales. But for now, its promoters prefer to move cautiously. “ We have been talking about it for twenty years without doing anything. Today, this first step is a victory “, summary Patrice Locmantgeneral director of the SGDL, whose members already have access to GfK at the SGDL headquarters. “ With Filéasce service will be accessible to all authors “, he rejoices.

Séverine Weisspresident of the Permanent Council of Writers adds: “ We are already very involved in the design of interfaces so that they are as adapted as possible to the needs of authors. ».

With its launch, Filéas offers a key tool to authors in high demand for visibility on their sales, in addition to reporting. During the constituent general assembly, Vincent Montagnepresident of the SNE, declared “ This project finds an outcome induced in the author-publisher agreement of 2013. This seems very important to us. It is also a wonderful sign of solidarity for the sector. “. This project stands out for its unifying approach, its interprofessional dimension, and its desire to combine technological innovation and social and environmental responsibility.