Effective 16 July 2012, Springer Science+Business Media has acquired the works of Canopus Academic Publishing Ltd. (CAP), a UK-based physics and astronomy publisher. CAP is a sister company of Canopus Publishing Ltd. The acquired assets consist of more than 50 published and contracted, or planned, monographs, proceedings, and major reference works such as the recently published Handbook of Visual Display Technology. The titles will become part of Springer's physics portfolio.
CAP covers all aspects of physics and the physical sciences and has particularly strong links with the physics community in the UK. Tom Spicer, one of the two owner directors of Canopus Academic Publishing Ltd., will join Springer in order to ensure a smooth transition and further development of the acquired program. Robin Rees, also owner director, will continue as an astronomy consultant for Springer as well as publish popular science books at Canopus Publishing Ltd.
Liesbeth Mol, Editorial Director Physics at Springer, said, "This acquisition will help us move the physics program ahead, especially within the UK, one of the leading areas in physics research. We are delighted that an experienced physics editor like Tom Spicer will become a member of the Springer team and are looking forward to the continued collaboration with Robin Rees."
Robin Rees said, "CAP has cooperated closely with Springer in the past. They have been the most delightful team to work with in academic physics and astronomy – our colleagues are all real researchers, and have a refreshingly cerebral approach to business."
Founded by Robin Rees in 1999, Canopus Publishing Ltd. has built a reputation for producing top-quality books for the science market, with a strong emphasis on titles in astronomy and astrophysics. Its sister company Canopus Academic Publishing (CAP) was established by Robin Rees and Tom Spicer in 2008. CAP's focus is on research level titles aimed at those working in academia and industry. Books published include research monographs, graduate level texts, and major reference works (MRWs) which run to several thousand pages.
Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com) is a leading global scientific publisher, providing researchers in academia, scientific institutions and corporate R&D departments with quality content via innovative information products and services. Springer is also a trusted local-language publisher in Europe – especially in Germany and the Netherlands – primarily for physicians and professionals working in the automotive, transport and healthcare sectors. Roughly 2,000 journals and more than 7,000 new books are published by Springer each year, and the group is home to the world's largest STM eBook collection, as well as the most comprehensive portfolio of open access journals. Springer employs nearly 6,200 individuals across the globe and in 2011 generated sales of approximately EUR 875 million.