Vook

Pronoun
Predecessor Vook
Founded 2009
Country of origin United States
Headquarters location New York City
Publication types Ebooks
Owner(s) Pronoun, Inc.
Official website www.pronoun.com

Vook is a New York-based company that publishes digital books that combine text, video, links to the internet and social media into singular applications available both online and as mobile applications.[1] Vook was founded by serial Internet entrepreneur Bradley Inman and was announced in April 2009.[2]

Vook officially launched October 1, 2009 with four debut titles, published in partnership with Atria, an imprint of Simon & Schuster: Promises, a romance by Jude Deveraux; The 90 Second Fitness Solution, a fitness book by Pete Cerqua; Embassy, a thriller by Richard Doetsch; and Return to Beauty, a health book by Narine Nikogosian.[3]

In 2010, Vook, in partnership with NBC Universal and Perseus Books, launched JFK: 50 Days, an interactive eBook, and the Video Guide series of eBooks, among other apps and eBooks.

In 2011, Vook launched several new series of titles, including TextVook (animated eBooks and apps on academic subjects) and Brief Histories (historical overviews of popular subjects enhanced with video and text), in partnership with Charles River Editors.[4]

Vook partnered with ABC News to create several enhanced eBooks, including A Modern Fairy Tale: William, Kate, and Three Generations of Royal Love, TARGET: Bin Laden – The Life and Death of Public Enemy Number One, and The Amanda Knox Story.

In 2012, Vook launched a platform for ebook creation and publishing. The platform includes management of multiple titles, a WYSIWYG editor, metadata, media management, and push button publishing to multiple ebook stores.[5]

In 2015, Vook was rebranded as Pronoun, a self-publishing and analytics platform for authors.[6]

Financing

In January 2010 Vook raised $2.5 million in seed financing from a group of prominent Silicon Valley and New York investors including Ron Conway, Michael Maples and Kenneth Lerer.[7] In December 2010, Vook raised $5.25 million in Series A financing.[8] Investors in this round included VantagePoint Venture Partners and FLOODGATE.[8][9] Vook acquired Byliner, a digital imprint, in 2014.[10]

References

  1. ↑ Rich, Motoko (September 30, 2009). "Curling Up With Hybrid Books, Videos Included". The New York Times.
  2. ↑ Stone, Brad (April 4, 2009). "Is This the Future of the Digital Book?". The New York Times.
  3. ↑ Plesser, Andy (September 30, 2009). "Video: Simon & Schuster Authors on "Game-Changing" Platform for Digital Book/Video Hybrid with a new "Vook"". The Huffington Post.
  4. ↑ http://www.charlesrivereditors.com
  5. ↑ http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/content-and-e-books/article/51217-vook-launches-e-book-creation-and-publishing-platform.html
  6. ↑ Reid, Calvin (2015-05-19). "Vook Pivots, Becomes Self-Pub Platform Pronoun". Publisher's Weekly. Retrieved 1 September 2015.
  7. ↑ Vook, an E-Book Start-Up, Raises $2.5 Million
  8. 1 2 Vook Funding
  9. ↑ Digital Publisher Vook Closes $5.25 Million Financing
  10. ↑ http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/digital/content-and-e-books/article/63976-vook-acquires-byliner.html

External links

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