In yet another industry first, Asia’s biggest English language publisher Penguin Books India has announced that it is entering into a partnership with Mobifusion to make content available on the mobile platform.

Mobifusion Inc. is a global developer, publisher and distributor of mobile technologies and value-added services and will make a wide range of content from Penguin’s books available to mobile customers. The partnership that will begin with a focus on the Indian consumer base will look to a global roll-out in time, expanding to include Penguin’s global brand and an array of international products.

Given changing lifestyles and evolving technologies, this tie-up is a great new step towards making content available to new readers. Consumers will soon be able to access content from books on their mobiles even when they are on the move, and participate in exciting interactive opportunities.

The Penguin–Mobifusion partnership will begin with content from three popular Penguin books—The Joy in Loving: A Guide to Daily Living with Mother Teresa complied by Jaya Chaliha and Edward Le Joly, The Path to Tranquillity by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and The Book of Prayer edited by Renuka Narayanan—being made available on mobile platforms.

‘We’re excited to partner with the innovators at Mobifusion and engage in interactive communications with the millions of mobile users who are also avid readers,’ said Mike Bryan, CEO and President, Penguin Books India.  ‘At Penguin, we aspire to make great literature in all its forms available to the widest possible audience and this is a very significant step on that journey as we look to build a solid mobile reading community across India.’ Genevieve Shore, Penguin Group’s Global Digital Director added, ‘At Penguin we see mobile technology as a hugely exciting global opportunity, not just as a means of widening access to our content, but also as a way to meet the growing consumer demand for personalized content and services.

Soniya Nautiyal