Hachette Book Group USA became the second major U.S. publisher to officially announce its intention to move to an agency model for the sale of e-books. In a letter sent to agents Thursday night, CEO David Young said that after considering the new pricing models for some time, it decided the agency model made the most sense for the entire industry. As Young sees it, the agency model lets “Hachette make pricing decisions that are rational and reflect the value of our authors’ works. In the long run this will enable Hachette to continue to invest in and nurture authors’ careers – from major blockbusters to new voices. Without this investment in our authors, the diversity of books available to consumers will contract, as will the diversity of retailers, and our literary culture will suffer.