Divinity Boutique signed a lease in March for a new showroom at AmericasMart in Atlanta.

The company’s showroom will be located on the 13th floor of building 2 (#1340) in the downtown complex that draws retail gift buyers from around the world with its permanent and temporary showrooms.

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that textbooks and other goods made and sold abroad can be resold online and in discount stores without violating U.S. copyright law, Associated Press (AP) reported.

In a 6-3 opinion March 19, the court threw out a copyright infringement award to publisher John Wiley & Sons against Thai graduate student Supap Kirtsaeng, who used eBay to resell copies of the publisher's copyrighted books that his relatives first bought abroad at cut-rate prices.

"We are disappointed that [the] copyright decision by the U.S. Supreme Court ignores broader issues critical to America's ability to compete in the global marketplace," said Tom Allen, president and CEO of the Association of American Publishers (AAP). "The decision will have significant ramifications for Americans who produce the books, music, movies and other content consumed avidly around the world.

"The court's interpretation of the 'first sale' provision of U.S. copyright law will discourage the active export of U.S. copyrighted works," Allen added.

In his opinion, Justice Stephen Breyer said that once goods are sold lawfully, whether in the U.S. or elsewhere, publishers and manufacturers lose the protection of U.S. copyright law, AP reported.

"We hold that the 'first sale' doctrine applies to copies of a copyrighted work lawfully made abroad," Breyer wrote.

The ruling was a major victory for eBay, Costco and other businesses that trade in products made outside the U.S., AP reported.

"To quote Justice Ginsburg's dissenting opinion, the divided ruling is a 'bold departure' from Congress' intention 'to protect copyright owners against the unauthorized importation of low-priced, foreign-made copies of their copyrighted works' that is made 'more stunning' by its conflict with current U.S. trade policy," Allen said. "AAP expects that Congress will likely consider whether the impact of the court's divided ruling on the ability of U.S. producers to effectively compete in global markets requires legislative clarification."

Jossey-Bass, which publishes some religious and spiritual titles, is an imprint of Wiley.

The Truth Matters blog has proclaimed that "America needs" A&E TV's popular reality show Duck Dynasty, the subject of the upcoming cover story in the May issue of Christian Retailing.

The show features the Robertson family, who transformed their home-grown, duck-call business in Louisiana into a multimillion-dollar sporting empire, while staying grounded in faith and family values.

Gifts and books tied to Duck Commander have been released, including The Duck Commander Family (Howard Books) by Willie Robertson, who serves as CEO of Duck Commander and Buck Commander, and his wife, Korie—daughter of former Howard Books Publisher John Howard, who also now works at the company.

"The Duck Commander products and books are critical to Christian retail because the whole family is Christ-oriented and wants the gospel presented to all," Howard, contract administrator for Duck Commander, told Christian Retailing.

Duck Dynasty's first two seasons are available on DVD from Thomas Nelson through its partnership with Lionsgate. Additionally, New Day Christian Distributors distributes Duck Commander's "Faith-Family-Ducks" products, which include mesh hats, license plates, can coolers, key chains and more.

"The Robertson family provides a taste of salt and a glimpse of light for our culture," Eric Douglas, a Kentucky pastor and college instructor, wrote "5 Reasons America Needs Duck Dynasty" on his Truth Matters blog. "In a culture that is tasteless and dark, Duck Dynasty is a show that is well-able to influence us in a positive way."

Douglas praised the show because of its emphasis on family, work, clean humor, the fact that men are men and women are women, and public prayer.

"With Duck Dynasty, you do not see TV evangelists," he said. "What you will taste is salt and what you will see is light."

Click here to read two Duck Dynasty entries on the Truth Matters blog.

Click here to order Duck Dynasty DVDs from Thomas Nelson.

The National Religious Broadcasters' (NRB) 70th annual convention drew significant involvement from Christian publishers, according to organizers of the recent four-day event.

Held March 2-5 at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Hotel in Nashville, the event featured nine publishers exhibiting on the exposition floor compared to only six publishing houses in 2012.

"I think it's safe to say that we had a great deal of involvement from Christian publishers this year—perhaps even greater than previous years," NRB Director of Communications Kenneth Chan told Christian Retailing. "We had more than 20 authors holding book signings from the exposition floor.

"We also had more than 30 authors for the new authors and artists reception event," he added. "The area was packed with people. The media center was also bustling with almost non-stop interviews, many of which involved authors."

David C Cook Senior Publicity Manager Lisa Beech said the publisher brought Travis Thrasher, who wrote a novelization of Home Run, a faith-based movie scheduled to hit theaters April 19.

"We haven't brought authors that I know of for the past few years," she said. "Everyone seemed to be very excited about Home Run, both the movie and book. It was definitely worth sending Travis to do interviews."

Cook also gave away free copies of Cold Case Christianity: A Homicide Detective Investigates the Claims of the Gospels by J. Warner Wallace.

"The media was very interested and excited to hear the line up of current and new books coming from David C Cook," Beech said. "Relationships are priceless and any time we can come together and help each other meet goals, we don't want to pass up those opportunities like NRB allows."

Other publishers who came to the event included HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Harvest House Publishers, Moody Publishers and Tyndale House Publishers. Among the dozens of speakers at the convention were Tony Evans, Bobby Gruenewald, Tim Challies and Nick Hall, as well as social media representatives from Twitter, Google and Facebook.

Voting ends March 31 in the 2013 Christian Retailing’s Best awards. Until midnight Easter Sunday, anyone connected with the Christian retailing industry—including authors, editors, literary agents and distributors—can vote for what they think are the best products in the Christian retail market.

Suppliers and authors have nominated 2012 releases—books, Bibles, gifts, music, DVDs, children’s products and more—as well as Backlist titles in the 2013 awards sponsored by Christian Retailing magazine.

Mark Burnett and Roma Downey's novelization of The Bible TV miniseries, The Bible: A Story of God and All of Us (FaithWords), has become a national best-seller. Released Feb. 26, the novel debuted at No. 6 on the Publishers Weekly Hardcover Fiction list for the week of March 3 and No. 27 on the New York Times Hardcover Fiction list for the week of March 24.

It also debuted at No. 3 on the Fiction best-sellers and at No. 18 on the General best-sellers from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association, tracking sales for the week ending March 2, according to Pubtrack Christian data.

"We are incredibly humbled by the reaction to the series and the books," said Burnett, best known for producing the TV shows Survivor, The Voice and The Apprentice, and his actress wife, Roma Downey. "Working with this sacred text is a once-in-a-lifetime honor. Our hope is that the books will continue to inspire and encourage. First the series becomes No. 1 in television, now the book is on the New York Times best-seller list. God is moving."

Rolf Zettersten, senior vice president and publisher of Hachette Nashville FaithWords' parent, added: "We are ecstatic that Roma's and Mark's track record of producing hits has followed them from television to publishing. Their books are every bit as magical and successful as their miniseries production."

In addition, FaithWords has released another novel and a devotional based on the miniseries: A Story of God and All of Us: Young Readers Edition and A Story of God and All of Us Reflections: 100 Daily Inspirations Based on the Epic TV Miniseries, both by Burnett and Downey. Twentieth Century Fox (Provident Distribution) will release The Bible on DVD and Blu-ray April 2.

The Bible debuted March 3 on the History Channel. More than 14.8 million viewers watched the first episode of the 10-hour TV miniseries, the highest-rated cable show of the year. Burnett and Downey, of Touched by an Angel fame, produced the five-part miniseries of major Bible stories, from Noah's ark and the Exodus to the death and resurrection of Jesus, airing Sundays this month—culminating on Easter, March 31.

Click here to read a column about The Bible miniseries by Downey and Burnett in the February issue of Christian Retailing.

Click here for more information on The Bible miniseries. 

Karen Kingsbury's The Chance (Howard Books) was ranked No. 1 on the Fiction best-sellers and at No. 5 on the General best-sellers from the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA), tracking sales for the week ending March 16, according to Pubtrack Christian data. The novel was released March 5.

The rest of the Top 20 General best-sellers were: 1. Jesus Calling, Sarah Young, hardcover (Thomas Nelson); 2. Torn, Jud Wilhite (Multnomah Books); 3. Heaven Is for Real, Todd Burpo (Thomas Nelson); 4. Jesus Calling, Young, large print deluxe (Thomas Nelson); 6. Jesus Today, Young, hardcover (Thomas Nelson); 7. The 5 Love Languages, Gary Chapman (Northfield Publishing/Moody Publishers); 8. Pursued, Jud Wilhite (FaithWords); 9. Damascus Countdown, "The Twelfth Imam" No. 3, Joel C. Rosenberg (Tyndale House Publishers); 10. The Harbinger, Jonathan Cahn (FrontLine/Charisma House Book Group); 11. Jesus Calling, Young, women's edition (Thomas Nelson); 12. Jesus Calling, Young, deluxe (Thomas Nelson); 13. Truth-Stained Lies, "Moonlighter Series" No. 1, Terri Blackstock (Zondervan); 14. One Year Mini for Moms, Ellen Banks Elwell (Tyndale); 15. God Gave Us Easter, Lisa Tawn Bergren (WaterBrook Press); 16. Follow Me, David Platt (Tyndale); 17. The Boy Who Came Back From Heaven, Kevin and Alex Malarkey (Tyndale); 18. Gods at War, Kyle Idleman (Zondervan); 19. The Purpose Driven Life, Rick Warren (Zondervan); and 20. Battlefield of the Mind, Joyce Meyer (FaithWords).

The Top 10 Fiction best-sellers were: 1. The Chance; 2. Damascus Countdown; 3. The Harbinger; 4. Truth-Stained Lies; 5. The Bible: A Story of God and All of Us, Mark Burnett and Roma Downey (FaithWords); 6. Sacrifice, "Abram's Daughters" No. 3, Beverly Lewis (Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group); 7. Cross Roads, William P. Young (FaithWords); 8. The Icecutter's Daughter, "Land of Shining Water" No. 1, Tracie Peterson (Bethany House/Baker Publishing Group); 9. The Twelfth Imam, "The Twelfth Imam" No. 1, Joel C. Rosenberg (Tyndale); and 10. Abducted, "Pacific Coast Justice" No. 2, Janice Cantore (Tyndale).

The top five Bibles were: 1. The Story, NIV, deluxe, hardcover, New International Version (Zondervan); 2. NLT God Sightings, softcover, New Living Translation (Tyndale); 3. NIrV Backpack Bible, Italian Duo-Tone, blue with cross, New International Reader's Version (Zondervan); 4. KJV Baby Gift Bible, hardcover, King James Version (Thomas Nelson); and 5. NKJV Pew Bible, black hardcover, New King James Version (Thomas Nelson).