MIT Press signs with Tizra to build online computer library

["Anne Orens" <aorens@gmail.com>]

*MIT Press Teams with Tizra to Build an Online Computer Science 
Library*

Tizra's Agile PDF software to be used in press's first effort to 
broaden focus of online offerings beyond traditional scholarly 
and professional audiences.

April 30, 2008 (Cambridge, MA) - MIT Press has signed an 
agreement with Tizra, Inc., to use the company's recently 
launched Agile PDF software platform to create a website that 
will enable users to find, buy and view online versions of books 
published by the press.  The site, which will carry MIT Press 
branding, is scheduled to go live next month with books from the 
press's world-renowned Computer Science and related collections.

MIT Press's print works have long been noteworthy for reaching a 
broad audience beyond scholarly and professional readers, but 
prior to the initiative with Tizra, its online audience has been 
more specialized.  Because the new service will be available to 
individual as well as university and institutional customers, it 
represents a significant step toward broader online access to MIT 
Press content.  The service also represents the first time the 
press has sold online versions of its computer and information 
science books, which naturally appeal to online researchers.

"We are very happy to be working with Tizra," says MIT Press 
Director Ellen W. Faran. "Our books reach a wide audience of 
professionals, students, and general readers, and the Tizra 
platform enables us to offer them a greater choice of digital 
formats.  Most importantly, it will allow us to experiment with a 
variety of electronic offerings to find out what will best meet 
the needs of our readers."

For Tizra, the signing caps a series of deals that had already 
exceeded sales goals since the launch of Agile PDF in February. 
"Signing with MIT Press so soon after launch represents the 
strongest validation of our product and business model we could 
have hoped for," says David Durand, CEO of Rhode-Island based 
Tizra.  "Not only are they one of the largest and mos t 
prestigious university presses in the country, but they have a 
long track record of technological innovation, which we are proud 
to be associated with."

Part of the reason MIT chose Tizra's new platform for the 
initiative was the flexibility and direct control Agile PDF 
provides over site branding and product definition, without the 
investment and risks associated with custom software development. 
"Tizra offered us a very attractive way to build on our own 
brand, and to create new online products that play to the 
particular strengths of our publishing program," said Gita 
Manaktala, Marketing Director at the press.  "Like other 
publishers, we are still learning the best ways to distribute our 
books online, so it's imperative that we work with technology 
that will let us respond and adapt quickly."

For many MIT Press authors, editors and readers, however, the 
advantages of online access are already beyond doubt.  "Authors 
have been asking about online packaging - sometimes even before 
they sign with us," says Ada Brunstein, the press's Computer 
Science editor.  "They know it's important to readers, and many 
also believe seeing the content online will actually increase 
interest in purchasing the printed book."

*About The MIT Press*

The MIT Press, one of the largest American university presses, 
publishes scholarly books and journals in the humanities, social 
sciences, and sciences. With a long-standing commitment to 
distinctive design and the creative use of new technologies, The 
MIT Press publishes innovative research that pushes the 
boundaries of knowledge as well as comprehensive works that 
contribute to a foundational understanding of their fields. More 
information can be found at http://mitpress.mit.edu.

About Tizra

Tizra's mission is to provide content owners large and small with 
unprecedented control over the marketing, sales and delivery of 
their online content.  Tizra's first product, Agile PDF, is a 
hosted service that enables non-technical staff to create new 
online products from existing content and sell them through 
publisher branded web sites with highly flexible business terms. 
The company is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, and 
funded in part by Rhode Island's Slater Technology Fund.  More at 
http://tizra.com