Publisher Marketing Assistance Program

This program provides assistance to Manitoba book publishing companies to expand and sustain long-term marketing activities and to increase the sales of Manitoba books. There is one application intake March-April annually.

Eligibility Criteria

• Majority owned by Canadian citizens or landed immigrants resident in Manitoba, with head office and majority of operations in Manitoba. 
• An on-going operation with publishing as a primary, not peripheral activity (75 percent of revenues and expenses much be publishing related).
• In active operation for at least two years.
• Majority of titles are not authored by principles or employees of the company.
• A backlist of at least four original, eligible titles with at least two new titles published each year.
• Ineligible titles include directories, index compilations, catalogues of exhibitions, books of less than 48 pages (except children's books), books for which the author does not receive a royalty, books to which the author has made a financial contribution toward publication costs, and titles not authored by Canadian citizens or landed immigrants.

Summary

Financial Assistance

• The level of financial assistance is based on a publisher's eligible sales, marketing costs and an assessment of their overall marketing performance.  The maximum assistance is $15,000.
• The actual level of assistance is based on the combination of:
  • The lesser of one-third of the previous year's eligible marketing costs or a portion of the previous year's eligible sales (determined through a formula which compares an individual publisher's sales to the total eligible sales of all participating publishers); and,
  • An evaluation of the applicant's past marketing performance and plans for the coming year.
• Assistance will not exceed 50 percent of a publisher's total marketing costs from the previous year.
• Assistance will be provided in two installments: 75 percent upon approval and 25 percent upon receipt and review of a final report of marketing activities supported by these funds.  This report may be forwarded at any time once the project is complete, but no later than March 31st.
• The level of assistance provided by this program is subject to the availability of funds.

Manitoba Contact(s):
Victor Enns
Publishing Consultant
Manitoba Culture, Heritage and Tourism
6th floor - 213 Notre Dame Avenue
Winnipeg, Manitoba  R3B 1N3
Telephone: 204-945-7581
E-mail: Victor.Enns@gov.mb.ca
Web site: http://www.gov.mb.ca/chc/index.html