As a small, independent chess publisher, New In Chess has a fascinating company history. We were founded in 1968 (Dutch only) or 1984 (English). New In Chess was acquired by the Dutch publishing giant Elsevier in 1985 and sold back to the founder shortly after, when Elsevier realized that chess was too niche.
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In 2021, we were acquired by the Play Magus Group, which Chess.com subsequently bought. Our print book catalog has helped Chessable launch its fascinating chess learning platform, converting our author content into courses and, in recent years, videos. But Chess.com and Chessable are 100% online - and we still printed a lot of books and magazines. We love the smell of ink, and we enjoy reading a beautifully produced book into the wee hours of the night. The online and print business models are different. It made sense to be a separate company again and a partner where we can both grow the game of chess.
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In 2024, New In Chess left the Chess.com family and proudly joined two other chess book publishers, Quality Chess and Everyman Chess. The new company is a vibrant, independent chess publisher, aiming to publish up to 50 new titles each year and maintain a catalog of nearly 1,000 printed books.
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Grandmaster Jacob Aagaard is the CEO and owner of the new company, which is home to award-winning authors such as Garry Kasparov and Judit Polgar, Matthew Sadler and Axel Smith, Yasser Seirawan and Charles Hertan, Boris Gelfand and R.B. Ramesh, Joel Benjamin and Sam Shankland, Jan Timman and Genna Sosonko.
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The three publishing houses will operate as separate businesses, says grandmaster Jacob Aagaard. "New in Chess will continue much as it has." The New in Chess magazine will also continue as it is, focusing on independent journalism and entertaining chess content.
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