ARTSY COFOUNDER LAUNCHES TERTULIA, A UNIQUE DISCOVERY APP FOR BOOKS
"BOOKS WORTH TALKING ABOUT"
Tertulia Lets Readers See What Books Are Being Discussed Across the Web and Answers the Question "What Should I Read Next?"
NEW YORK, June 7, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Tertulia, a free discovery app for books with integrated purchasing, shipping, and community ownership, launched today on iOS. Founded by Sebastian Cwilich, previously cofounder of Artsy (which became the largest online fine art marketplace in the world); Robert Lenne, Artsy's longtime head of product and design; and Lynda Hammes, a former media and publishing executive, Tertulia has built its discovery engine using a unique approach: gathering book mentions and conversations from all across the web.
"In a world full of rich discovery services for movies, music, television, and fine art," said Cwilich, "there is, remarkably, no existing equivalent for books. And that is what we have spent the last eighteen months working on." Tertulia approaches book discovery in an intelligent and elegant new way, using both AI and editorial curation.
The premise of Tertulia is that readers discover books through many avenues with the most powerful recommendations coming from trusted sources. "Readers learn about books in conversation with friends, from voices on social media, by reading reviews, by hearing about awards, and by noting titles on bestseller lists," said Hammes. "Tertulia captures all those data points and more and presents them in a reader-forward, reader-friendly environment."
Tertulia, using both AI and editorial curation, can surface a deep well of book talk from across the web and present that information to readers in a way that is customizable from the outset. Readers can choose the categories of books they are interested in hearing about and the voices they are interested in hearing from. The app surfaces choices based on reader preferences and gains in intelligence over time. "Tertulia has vetted more than 10,000 diverse voices for the app at launch," said Hammes, "a number that will continue to grow over time." Among the sources and mentions that readers will see as they browse on the app: reviews, social media posts, awards, podcasts, bestseller lists, book club picks and critics' picks, among others.
When readers discover a book they want to learn more about, they have the option of being directed back to a rich content page for said book. "One of the goals of Tertulia is to create the best book page on the internet," said Lenne, "bringing together all the information a reader could want to decide whether to read a particular book." Tertulia will launch with access to 15 million titles through its partnership with Ingram Content Group, and comes to market as a ready alternative to Amazon and Goodreads. At launch, Tertulia will sell physical books, and is planning to add audiobooks by year end and eBooks in 2023.
Another unique aspect of Tertulia: community ownership. "We believe that a books company co-owned by a community of readers will better serve them and the books ecosystem," said Cwilich, "and therefore we've created our community ownership program, which gives Tertulia consumers a voice and a stake in our long-term success." All Tertulia users are invited to become members of the Tertulia Coop, which has a partial ownership stake in Tertulia, Inc. Tertulia users who join its membership program will earn co-ownership units in proportion to their book purchases. Additionally, Tertulia members will receive unlimited free shipping and a sitewide 10% discount on all books. Tertulia membership is $25/year, and Tertulia is offering its early users a free three-month trial membership.
Tertulia also features "most talked about" book lists in categories including fiction, nonfiction, crime and thrillers, mystery, science fiction, fantasy, historical fiction, tech and science, biographies and memoirs, YA, children's, business and productivity, history, politics and current affairs, and self-development. These trending lists, updated on a rolling basis, are based on conversations from across the web and help expose readers to books beyond the titles on bestseller lists. "We think of these lists as having the potential to capture the holy grail of book discovery via word-of-mouth mentions," said Hammes, "and they will, we hope, broaden reader appetites beyond the familiar."
In the run-up to launch, Tertulia presented beta versions of the app to small groups of agents and authors. "We especially wanted feedback from authors," said Cwilich, "and they were incredibly forthcoming with their recommendations." Many of their suggestions will be incorporated into the app in the coming months. "Agents immediately recognized the app's potential for authors," said Hammes, "and authors immediately recognized the app's potential for readers."
Readers inform the core of the Tertulia user experience. "Readers have always been our North Star," said Cwilich. "Every decision we make is based on developing a great discovery experience for them. We also recognize that publishers have been working on discovery since the advent of the internet, and we are excited to collaborate with them to help readers discover books both old and new."
Tertulia was founded following an early incubation and research phase involving John Ingram, chairman of Ingram Content Group (the world's largest book distributor), technology investor Ryan Darnell of Max Ventures, and investor Joe Rizk of Runyon Ventures. Tertulia has raised $6M in pre-seed and seed funding from leading investors including AlleyCorp (with AlleyCorp founder/CEO Kevin Ryan joining the Board of Tertulia), Bob Pittman (CEO of iHeartMedia and founder of MTV), Sky Dayton (founder of EarthLink), Jon Oringer (founder of Shutterstock), Dan Teran (founder of Managed by Q), Jay Livingston (CMO of Shake Shack), and leading venture firms including Canvas Ventures and FJ Labs.
Inspired by the informal salons ("tertulias") of Spanish cafés and bars, Tertulia is building a new way to discover books through all the lively and enriching conversations they inspire. Tertulia presents book recommendations and book talk from across social media, podcasts, and the web — all in one app with seamless book purchasing. If a book has moved people enough to get them talking, you can find it, buy it, and share it on Tertulia.
The name Tertulia is Spanish. Historically, tertulias were a type of popular literary salon in Spain beginning in the seventeenth century. Today, tertulias are more casual, with patrons of bars and cafés throughout Spain gathering in them to discuss books, the arts, and current events.
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