South by Southwest, the long-running media and music conference in Austin, Tex., is entering book publishing through a partnership with Advantage Media on a new imprint, SXSW Books. The imprint will publish works by experts and innovators across creative industries with a mission to "encourage the production of ideas that can mold the future of tech, film, music, and beyond."
"At SXSW, our purpose is to help creative people achieve their goals," said Hugh Forrest, president of SXSW, in a statement. "Working with Advantage gives us the opportunity to shine a spotlight on authors who are trailblazers in their fields."
The imprint, which operates on a tiered hybrid model, joins Advantage's existing publishing portfolio, including Entrepreneur Books and Forbes Books. Advantage aims, per its chief growth and publishing officer, Evan Schnittman, to release 100 books per year per imprint, with titles distributed by Ingram's Two Rivers division. Advantage will provide SXSW Books authors with writing, editing, design, distribution, promotion, and media strategy services.
"We warmly welcome South by Southwest as a valuable partner in our mission to help entrepreneurs, innovators, and changemakers bring their stories, passion, and knowledge to the world," said Adam Witty, CEO of Advantage.
The partnership was brokered by Penske Media Corporation Brand Group, the majority shareholder of SXSW. Thomas Ferguson, VP of licensing, partnerships, and consumer products at Penske, said that the partnership aims to help authors "cultivate new status within their fields through the prestigious ecosystem of the SXSW brand and annual events."
Launch dates for the first titles under the new imprint are forthcoming.