Wizards of the Coast is ending its distribution relationship with Penguin Random House Publisher Services for its Dungeons & Dragons products as of December 31, 2023, but has assured its customers that the book channel will continue to receive D&D, the company said in a statement on the topic today. WotC’s licensing relationship with Penguin Random House for D&D-related publishing will continue.
The announcements from PRH and Wizards of the Coast directed customers of PRH to WotC’s hobby distributor network for D&D, which includes: Alliance Game Distributors, Diamond Comic Distributors, GTS Distribution, Magazine Exchange, PHD, and Southern Hobby Distribution.
"Penguin Random House is a valued partner and publishing licensee of Wizards of the Coast," Wizards of the Coast said in a statement sent to ICv2 today. "While we deeply appreciate the excellent service provided over the years by PRHPS, we are now shifting our distribution strategy to utilize the capabilities of Hasbro to sell and distribute D&D products to retailers, and we will continue to partner with PRH on licensed D&D titles like the recently released Lore & Legends and the upcoming Hero's Feast: Flavors of the Multiverse. This change to distribution of Wizards' D&D roleplaying game publications such as rulebooks and adventure content won't affect fans as they will continue to find Dungeons & Dragons products at their preferred retailers."
One likely impact of the move is that wholesalers buying Dungeons & Dragons from PRH, including ACD Distribution (which was terminated as a WotC distributor after an acrimonious dispute, see “ACD Loses Appeal”), will no longer have access to that source on the line.
Note: An earlier version of this article incorrectly stated that PRH was ending the relationship rather than WotC, and that licensed products would also be affected. We apologize for that incorrect info, which has been corrected. – ed.
Book Channel Will Continue to Receive 'D&D'
Posted by ICv2 on October 5, 2023 @ 4:37 pm CT