London, England -- (SBWire) -- 01/20/2010 -- CCV Publishing, part of The Random House Group, has partnered with social networking solution provider, Webjam, to design, develop and host an interactive online community for its Vintage imprint. The ‘Vintage Reading Group’ not only lets book lovers discuss their latest reads, write reviews and interact with like-minded people about literature – but also allows them with one click to run their own personal reading group.
Through the Vintage Reading Group community portal, CCV hopes to interact more closely with its readers whilst giving them the opportunity to discover and discuss new books. The social network also allows readers to interact with those passionate about reading anywhere in the world. Within the Vintage Reading Group portal, readers can also develop their own reading group, bringing a traditional off-line community online. Readers can invite members of their reading groups to join their own private social network focused around genres, authors, interests, books or simply to interact with their book-loving friends wherever they may be.
Claire Wilshaw, Vintage Marketing Manager, CCV Publishing, comments, "The Vintage Reading Group is a community of reading groups – where members can share ideas, recommend books and gain inspiration. Webjam allows us to forge a group of like-minded readers to engage in debate and receive feedback and ultimately, drive more sales of our books."
CCV has embraced the spirit of social media by making its portal open to everyone interested in books. This makes the portal an ideal platform for other literature-focused organisations, such as libraries and bookshops, to create their own sub-networks to let their customers interact easily and engage with other readers worldwide.
Commenting on the launch, Lexie Mendelson, Director of Business Development at Webjam, said: “The publishing industry is changing as are their customers in both the way they consume books and communicate with each other. By launching a social network and personalized reading groups CCV is putting a stake in the ground for the industry by innovating for the future whilst recognising the continued importance of the physical book to readers worldwide. A social network provides the perfect forum for readers to discuss with others what they really feel about the books they’re reading.”
About Webjam
Webjam helps companies to connect with their customers and employees by providing them with an easy, affordable solution for social publishing and engagement. Our clients manage their own branded and customisable social media environment in which content is created and shared easily, communities grow naturally and social media networks integrate seamlessly.
Founded in 2006 and based in London, Webjam is a Guardian Tech Media 100 company and its platform is being used across a variety of sectors, from the world’s largest media and directory companies, to consumer brands and professional organisations.
For more information about Webjam, visit http://www.webjam.com/about_us/newsroom
About CCV
CCV focuses on publishing quality literary fiction and non-fiction and is made up of eight different imprints: Chatto & Windus, Harvill Secker, Jonathan Cape, Yellow Jersey, The Bodley Head, Pimlico, Square Peg and Vintage.
Vintage in the UK was created in 1990 to publish paperback editions of the fiction and non-fiction books published by the literary hardback imprints in The Random House Group. In 2007 the list expanded to include Vintage Classics. This meant that the greatest writers from previous centuries, such as Jane Austen, Charles Dickens, Lewis Carroll, and Henry James, were published alongside writers like Philip Roth, Ian McEwan and Martin Amis. This move was in keeping with the ambition of Vintage as a whole: to bring the best writers of yesterday, today and tomorrow to as wide a readership as possible.
About The Random House Group
The Random House Group is one of the largest general book publishing companies in the UK. The Group is based in London and has subsidiary companies in Australia, New Zealand and India, with a joint venture in South Africa called Random House Struik.
The Group comprises five publishing companies: Cornerstone Publishing, CCV, Ebury Publishing, Random House Children's Books and Transworld Publishers, boasting more than 40 diverse and highly respected imprints. The Random House Group distribution business services its own imprints as well as 60 other UK publishers.
The Random House Group is an independently managed subsidiary of Random House Inc in the US, the trade book publishing division of Bertelsmann AG, one of the world's largest and most diversified integrated media companies.
Press Contacts:
Marc Campman
Director of Marketing
Webjam
Tel: +44 7545 328 921
Skype: marc Campman
Email: marc.campman@webjam-ltd.com
Toby Brown
Buffalo Communications
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7 292 8680
Email: webjam@buffalo.co.uk
Reading Groups Go Social With Webjam
CCV chooses Webjam to provide social networking interaction for avid book readers