Open Road Ignition Drives Strong Sales and Profitability in Q4 for Open Road Integrated Media

By: Robert Diamond Jan. 18, 2018

NEW YORK, Jan. 18, 2018 /PRNewswire/ Open Road Integrated Media (OR/M), Fueled by the launch of Open Road Ignition (Ignition), a new revenue-share marketing services program for book publishers, Open Road Integrated Media, a digital media and marketing company, reported continued strong revenue results through Q4 2017. Highlights include a year-over-year revenue increase of 23%, an overall 46% improvement in contribution profit, and a 52% improvement in operating EBITDA, all of which created record profits for the company in Q4 2017. Ignition was a key contributor to that growth delivering a 202% uplift in revenue to partners whose titles are enrolled in the program.

Paul Slavin, CEO of OR/M, said "we developed a winning formula of finding, developing and engaging consumer audiences with quality products, and now we're extending that to include quality products from Ignition partners tooand it's working."

Ignition is a suite of tiered marketing services which allow publishers, brands, and authors to take advantage of OR/M's consumer marketing and sales expertise. The highest level of Ignition is a "white glove" revenue-share program in which OR/M partners with publishers to manage the complete 360-degree marketing for selected titles. Any revenue OR/M generates that is more than the partner's baseline revenue is shared between OR/M and the participating publisher. Although the publishing industry has traditionally reported consistent year-over-year declines in ebook sales, the partner pays nothing to OR/M until they have exceeded sales from the previous year. Over 600 titles are currently enrolled in the program, including titles from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. HMH's titles alone have earned a 280% revenue increase over baseline sales over the first five months of participation in the program.

Partners can also access OR/M's extensive, search-first content marketing opportunities, showcasing books or brands on any of OR/M's six digital properties. These include Early Bird Books, a daily eBook deals newsletter and website; The Lineup, for fans of true crime, horror, the mysterious, and the paranormal; The Portalist, for fans of science fiction, fantasy; Murder & Mayhem, for fans of mystery and thriller; The Archive, for fans of history and non-fiction; and A Love So True, for fans of romance.

"We've seen powerful results for our own titles when they are marketed to our audience of avid readers," Slavin said. "It's been gratifying to see that approach extended successfully to over 1000 titles that ran in paid promotions with us in 2017 from top trade publishers as well as self-published authors.

"In 2018, we will continue our mission to grow our audience, know and own our consumer, and establish ourselves in the industry as an unparalleled digital marketing platform," he continued. "OR/M is in the most solid financial position of its history, and the ongoing systematic implementation of our strategy will continue to drive strong growth in the coming year."

About Open Road Integrated Media

Open Road Integrated Media is a prestige content brand delivering digital experiences that entertain and inform readers around the world; their network of digital properties produces compelling stories that keep audiences engagedacross devices and around the world. The Open Road brands include Early Bird Books, a daily eBook deals newsletter and website; The Lineup, for fans of true crime, horror, the mysterious, and the paranormal; The Portalist, for fans of science fiction, fantasy; Murder & Mayhem, for fans of mystery and thriller; The Archive, for fans of history and non-fiction; and A Love So True, for fans of romance; and Open Road Media, a global eBook publisher whose catalog includes legendary authors such as William Styron, Alice Walker, Pat Conroy, Gloria Steinem, Octavia Butler, John Jakes, Pearl S. Buck, Walker Percy, Ruth Rendell, and Sherman Alexie.