You are viewing your 1 free article this month. Login to read more articles.
Former director of Interead Phil Wood has been appointed to the new role of Kobo’s country manager in the UK as the company also announced Dark Horse comic titles will be made available on the Kobo Vox e-reader.
Wood joins the company from TomKat Consulting where he was a consumer technology consultant; he was previously charged with creating awareness for the COOL-ER e-reader in his role with e-book start-up Interead. Wood said he was looking forward to “replicating” in the UK the same “phenomenal success” Kobo has had in North America.
He said: “The e-reading industry is a dynamic and fascinating space. My goal is to deliver a cohesive UK strategy and business plan at a time when the global business is moving forward at a phenomenal rate. My experience in the nascent e-reading market in the UK has given me a great perspective in helping to manage Kobo’s UK business. There are great times ahead for Kobo in the UK.”
Matt Welch, general manager for Kobo, said: “Having someone with [his] technology, commercial and e-reading expertise positions us well for our planned growth in the UK. We have seen tremendous first six months here and with Phil as country manager I am confident we’ll see Kobo continuing to drive forward the e-reading revolution.”
Meanwhile the company has announced a partnership with Dark Horse Comics, which produces titles such as Mass Effect, Star Wars, Serenity, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Hellboy and Sin City.
Michael Tamblyn, EVP Content, sales and merchandising, said: “All of us at Kobo are thrilled to be adding Dark Horse’s amazing titles to our library. Based on strong visual storytelling, comics are a great fit for the e-reading industry." Kobo said the seven-inch multimedia touchscreen on the Vox allows readers to experience a comic in “vivid colour".
Kobo launched in the UK in October 2011 as the exclusive e-reader brand for book and news retailer WH Smith.