NBC to Produce Video Enhanced eBooks for Tablets
In light of the huge popularity of digital publishing companies over the past few years, NBC News has decided to join the market with its own subsidiary company, NBC Publishing.
The news corporation plans to offer video and print-based e-books from its massive archive of information.
NBC Publishing will be based in New York and will produced enhanced e-books from over one million hours of video content, as well as the written word. The archival footage dates back to the 1920s and NBC has already secured the rights necessary to use the videos in e-books.
“Over the last two years, we’ve been looking at the tablet market and e reader market and watching it develop,” said Michael Fabiano, general manager of NBC Publishing. “Consumers are getting more comfortable downloading books with video. None of this is slowing down any time soon.”
In addition to staffing the department with employees with publishing experience, the company plans to have a senior producer and senior editor with a television background. “We’re merging these two disciplines to create new multimedia experiences,” said Fabiano.
NBC has already had its hand in the publishing cookie jar. The company has worked on joint projects with Perseus Books, Penguin and e-publisher Vook. According to Fabiano, NBC Publishing will continue its partnerships while developing its own, original content in-house.
One thing that is new to NBC Publishing’s public relations and marketing departments is traditional book publicity. “It’s a different beast, a product versus a show,” said Meghan Pianta, a communications professional at NBC News.
[Via: Digital Book World]