German publishing house, Heyne Verlag was founded by Wilhelm Rolf Heyen in Dresden in 1934. In 1948, however, it moved its operations to Munich. A paperback publisher since 1958, Heyne also established a number of specialist series, notably Heyne Science Fiction and Fantasy, eventually becoming the second largest paperback publishing house in Germany. In 1994 Heyne branched out into hardcover publications.
The company was taken over by Axel Springer AG on 1 January 2001, a few days after the death of 72 year-old Rolf Heyne. This acquisition saw Heyne Verlag merge with several other publishing houses - Econ and Ullstein. Two years later, however, Axel Springer was taken over by Bertelsmann AG and Heyne subsequently became part of the Random House conglomerate.
