On the digital learning platform from Blackwell’s
This is a guest post from Evie Prysor-Jones, Digital Publishing Executive, Blackwell’s Learning platform. (host of next month’s BookMachine London)
Blackwell’s Beginning
On New Year’s Day in 1879 Benjamin Henry Blackwell opened the doors to B.H. Blackwell’s, a 12-foot square bookshop on Broad Street in Oxford. On Tuesday 8th April 2014 Blackwell’s announced to the publishing industry that it was building a digital learning platform for students and academics, and on Monday 15th September 2014, we turned it on.
The Journey
I would love to use a different word other than ‘journey’, but that is really what this has been for Blackwell’s. When I walked into our hip little office in Shoreditch this time last year, there were only three other employees in the new Blackwell Learning team: a Tech Lead, a User Experience Designer and a Project Manager…I had only encountered the latter before, and not in publishing. A year later and now there’s a morning obstacle course through chairs, desks and developers, constant coffee brewing, weekly arguments about time-travel and daily use of the word ‘scrum’ – Blackwell Learning is officially a digital start-up.
Blackwell’s Presents
The new digital learning platform from Blackwell’s is a simple enough idea, even if the work behind it isn’t. Your free account allows you to access all your ebooks anywhere, on any device and you can highlight, note, bookmark and search your content. Thanks to Blackwell’s longstanding relationships with publishers, universities and consumers, we are well placed to produce something truly useful, and a little bit brilliant.
Onwards and Upwards
None of this would have been possible without the tremendous support we have received from publishers, and the more publishers we can work with the better, so please get in touch. We may have launched our site live to the world, but the journey is far from over. You can expect new development, constant improvement and much excitement to come from Blackwell’s so watch this space!
Contact innovation@blackwelllearning.co.uk for more information
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If you’d like to meet Evie, join us at BookMachine London on 6th November.