I am pleased to announce that Mushroom has signed up with WOWIO to offer some of our titles for free. The books are advertising supported, which involves two or three ads placed at the beginning and end of the book — there are no adverts placed to interrupt the reading experience at all. Mushroom receives a small remuneration from Wowio for each download, which we split with the author. Unfortunately, Wowio is only available in North America at the moment, but is hoping to make the service available internationally in the future. The books are available in PDF format, which can be read on desktops and laptops with Adobe Reader or other PDF viewers, and on some portable devices, such as the Sony Reader and Palm, using appropriate software.
We currently have titles by Roger Taylor, Moyra Caldecott and Dennis Radha-Rose available, and they provide an opportunity to sample these authors with something more substantial than the usual two or three chapters.
About WOWIO
What is WOWIO?
WOWIO is our passion. A passion for books. A passion for reading. A passion for removing barriers and expanding access to the written word. Ultimately, it’s passion for FREE BOOKS + FREE MINDS.
Our Goals
Our business goal is to build a unique and viable company that creates valued relationships between readers, sponsors, and publishers.
Our community goal is to dramatically expand access to written works by eliminating the economic, geographic, and logistical barriers while also ensuring fair compensation for publishers.
A Win-Win-Win Community
Authors and artists work hard to create their books and should receive fair compensation. WOWIO introduces sponsors as the primary source of compensation. Readers get books for free. Sponsors get opportunities to establish valued relationships with readers. Authors, artists, and their publishers get fair compensation. It’s a win-win-win for the WOWIO community — where each group willingly gives a little to get something in return.
Respect for Readers
As book fanatics, we revere the sanctity of books and the purity of the reading experience. Therefore, our inclusion of sponsors in the WOWIO community does not mean ads are indiscriminately placed in books. Instead, WOWIO appoints a sole sponsor who willingly covers the cost of the book in exchange for an opportunity to establish a meaningful connection with an appreciative reader. It’s about sponsors earning a reader’s respect by honoring their reading experience.
Respect for Sponsors
Traditional advertising shouts its message whether anyone wants to hear it and whether or not it is relevant. By contrast, WOWIO sponsorships are targeted by readers’ own pre-selected preferences — delivering messages that are more relevant. With WOWIO, it’s about sponsorships being a tool for awareness, rather than intrusion. It’s about readers having a say in the messages they see. And it’s about a mutual respect between sponsors and readers that results in unprecedented brand loyalty.
Respect for Publishers
Authors, artists, and their publishers are at risk in today’s digital world. Their passion and hard work is often trivialized by those seeking free access above fair compensation. WOWIO works to undermine this piracy by creating a sustainable micro-economy where books are free and their creators still get compensated. It’s simply about readers respecting the work of authors and artists by supporting the sponsors who pay them.
About WOWIO
WOWIO is today the only source where readers can legally download high-quality copyrighted ebooks from leading publishers for free. Readers have access to a wide range of offerings, including works of classic literature, college textbooks, comic books, and popular fiction and non-fiction titles.
WOWIO opened on the World Wide Web in August 2006. It is a privately owned company with headquarters in Houston, Texas.
