Open Road Integrated Media Has Acquired Bloodhound Books

Open Road Integrated Media (OR/M), a digital marketing and multimedia content company that connects authors with readers, acquired Bloodhound Books, a UK publisher of e-books and printed books. Founded in 2014 and based in Cambridge, Bloodhound Books has a backlist of 600 fiction titles and has sold approximately 6 million copies of its books worldwide.

With this acquisition the independent publisher (Bloodhound) will bring a unique network to the OR/M community and independent, successful authors to the partner content program, which will help fuel growth of the Company.

Paul Slavin, CEO of Open Road, says, “The acquisition of Bloodhound Books is demonstrative of the evolution of the publishing industry, and the opportunity for publishers and authors to align more directly with consumer interests and habits. OR/M is uniquely positioned to lead the publishing industry toward a better business model that leans into digital marketing and better leverages data-informed strategies. This acquisition is a huge positive, not only for shaping the future growth of Bloodhound, but also in helping to pave a better, more accessible digital path and discovery process for the publishing market as a whole.”

The Bloodhound editorial, production, and commissioning teams are to be integrated into Open Road’s existing Company structure to work alongside its finance, distribution and marketing teams,” per today’s announcement.

“OR/M recognizes the strong value in the Bloodhound brand,” Open Road says, “and as such, it will be retained in all markets while [Bloodhound co-directors] Betsy Reavley and Fred Freeman will stay on board at OR/M to ensure all team and author community’s best interests are met.”

“This is the perfect next step for book publishing entrepreneurs, enabling them to not only reap the financial rewards of what they have built but to also continue to grow their company even faster as part of OR/M while continuing to work with their talented authors,” said Robin Warner, Managing Director at Oaklins DeSilva & Phillips Investment Bank.  ODP represented OR/M on the buyside.

On April 28, Open Road reported a 42-percent increase in revenue for the first quarter of 2021, with 37,000 titles then on the “marketing-as-a-service” platform, which OR/M calls the “Open Road Ignition” program.

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 engaged—across devices. Open Road Media is a global ebook publisher whose catalog includes legendary authors such as Joan Didion, William Styron, Alice Walker, Dee Brown, Pat Conroy, Gloria Steinem, Octavia Butler, John Jakes, Pearl S. Buck, Walker Percy, and Sherman Alexie. Driven by the mission of bringing great literary works back to life, Open Road Media partners with premier authors of classic and contemporary works, making their content available to readers around the world.