Simon & Schuster, TurnHere unveil online video initiative

Televisionpoint.com Correspondent
Simon & Schuster, a part of the CBS Corporation, and TurnHere, the leading Internet video company, have signed an agreement to launch a book-centric internet video channel to promote Simon & Schuster authors and their new releases. The companies will produce videos with in-depth information on featured books and authors as well as sneak previews of upcoming titles. The channel, called Bookvideos.tv (http://bookvideos.tv), will launch in early June, will be hosted at a major online video site and will be cross promoted and linked to numerous sites across the web. The videos will also be available at SimonSays.com.

"Readers have long hungered for greater contact and more information about authors, Now readers will have a way to view and share compelling content about our authors, available on a 24/7 basis. Bookvideos.tv will allow readers to easily use the internet to replicate, for the digital age, the critical and time tested word of mouth excitement that comes from talking about a good read. Working with Turn Here to tap this huge potential audience is an exciting new way of marketing for us, and we expect to find legions of new readers while at the same time giving a new experience to dedicated fans of our authors." said Sue Fleming, Vice President, Online and Consumer Marketing for the Simon & Schuster Adult Publishing Group.

Under the terms of the agreement, TurnHere will post custom videos to a specially branded channel about noteworthy Simon & Schuster authors from all divisions of the company, including Adult, Children's, and Audio. Viewers will see two minute feature pieces focusing on the behind the scenes stories of author's lives, the content of their books, and the inspirations for their latest works. A few of the many authors participating in the initial launch are bestselling authors Sandra Brown, Mary Higgins Clark, Vince Flynn, Philippa Gregory, Ursula Hegi, Mark Hyman, Kathy Reichs, Michael Roizen and Mehmet Oz, Jennifer Weiner, Marianne Wiggins and Zane, and children's authors including Newbery Medal winner Susan Patron, national bestselling author Scott Westerfeld, and Spiderwick creators Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black. Simon & Schuster has committed to creating videos for at least 40 authors, with the possibility of expanding to an even greater number in the future. .

"Today's agreement gives Simon & Schuster a powerful new medium to enhance their online marketing efforts, By leveraging our global network of more than 2,000 filmmakers, Web video becomes a cost-effective marketing tool that book publishers can use to keep site visitors engaged longer and to improve overall user experience by strengthening the bond between readers and their favorite authors." said Bradley J. Inman, founder and CEO of TurnHere.