NEW YORK, Sept. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Vook, Inc. is pleased to announce it is acquiring Byliner, the pre-eminent boutique publisher of the world’s best short fiction and non-fiction. Vook’s proprietary publishing and data-driven marketing platform powers the publishing programs of the world’s leading media companies and brands including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Fast Company, and Thought Catalog. Byliner is joining Vook as its first in-house imprint, launching the next step in its plan to expand its platform to a growing universe of authors and independent content creators.

“We are excited to welcome Byliner’s authors to Vook,” said Vook CEO Josh Brody. “Acquiring Byliner is our first step towards applying everything we’ve learned from powering large brands’ digital publishing programs to create a new publishing model that empowers authors to publish faster, market smarter, and keep more creative and financial control of their work.”

Until now, Vook has used its enterprise-level technology and data to create, distribute, and promote over 5,000 ebooks in partnership with leading brands, publishers, and media companies. With the acquisition of Byliner, Vook will support Byliner’s existing titles and acquire new projects for release under the Byliner imprint. “We have always been huge fans of Byliner’s writers and books. We’re looking forward to working with Byliner writers to publish more titles, and to adding new writers to the imprint,” said Vook Co-Founder and Publisher Matthew Cavnar.

Byliner writers will be among the first authors to get direct access to Vook’s publishing technology, including insight into Vook’s proprietary data, a daily sales and marketing dashboard, distribution to more retail channels, and high quality production and support for new projects.

“Byliner built a quality brand and content business that set a new standard for digital publishing. As a recognized leader and innovator in the ebook marketplace, Vook’s team and technology is a perfect fit for Byliner authors,” said Deanna Brown, President of Byliner.

Vook, based in New York City, is funded by Tribeca Venture Partners, VantagePoint Capital Partners, Baseline Ventures, Felicis Venture Partners, Floodgate, Founder Collective, Lerer Ventures, and SV Angel. Byliner’s investors include Avalon Ventures, Freestyle Capital, SoftTechVC, Bullpen Capital, Random House Inc., ICG Ventures, and Crunchfund.

SOURCE Vook, Inc.