Friedman to Leave HarperCollins, Murray to Succeed

Jane Friedman left her position as CEO of publishing company HarperCollins, right around the time when the book industry is facing challenges concerning decreasing annual revenues and payrolls.

According to eFluxMedia and the Associated Press, Friedman's decision to leave the company was one of the "hardest choices that she had to make" and felt that the ten years that she spent serving there were "extremely rewarding."

HarperCollins owner Rupert Murdoch agreed with Friedman's sentiments, praising her ten years of service and recognizing her desire to seek new challenges for herself. He added that her resignation, which was filed on Wednesday, would immediately take effect.

Prior to Friedman's tenure at HarperCollins, she spent time as the vice-president of Random House, Inc. and Knopf Publishing Group, along with being president of Random House Audio Publishing and publisher of Vintage Books.

Friedman will be succeeded by Brian Murray, HarperCollins's president. He began his time with the company in 1997, was named CEO of the company's headquarters in Australia/New Zealand in 2001, and then became group president of the association's U.S. division in 2004. He has served as HarperCollins's president since July of last year.