26 January 2011

Introducing TED Books

Today, we’re thrilled to announce the launch of TED Books, an imprint of short nonfiction works designed for digital distribution. Shorter than traditional books, TED Books run less than 20,000 words each — long enough to explain a powerful idea, but short enough to be read in a single sitting. Books are available on the Kindle and Kindle Reader apps, and cost $2.99 each.

We launch with three titles from TEDTalks stars:

Nic Marks: The Happiness Manifesto: How Nations and People Can Nurture Well-Being
Juan Enriquez and Steve Gullans: Homo Evolutis: Please Meet the Next Human Species
Gever Tulley: Beware Dangerism! Why We Worry About the Wrong Things, and What It’s Doing to Our Kids

“The success of TEDTalks has demonstrated that millions of people around the world are hungry to absorb new ideas,” said TED curator Chris Anderson. “But not everyone has the time to go out and read an entire book on an interesting subject. TED Books fill that gap. Their shorter format allows someone to see an idea fleshed out in a satisfying way — without having to set aside a week of reading time.” Read more of Chris Anderson’s thought on TED Books >>

TED Books are launching as part of Amazon’s brand-new Kindle Singles imprint. (Read their press release.) As Amazon told us: “Our goal with Singles is to allow compelling ideas to be expressed at their natural length. TEDBooks fit nicely within that mission,” said Russ Grandinetti, vice president of Kindle Content. “TED has a great history of bringing important ideas to a wider audience, and we expect TEDB ooks will add to that legacy.”

Read the full TED Books press release >>

Learn more about TED Books >>

Watch TEDTalks from these TED Books authors >>

Discuss this Blog Post

petiteragazza
Jan 26 2011
I love the idea!
Hugo Wagner
Jan 26 2011
Another great idea! I hope these books are the first on a long list.
@TedxParis 2011, TED’s European Director Bruno Giussani said : “We, at TED, aim at creating a platform for Spreading Ideas, using all ways at our disposal”. Congratulations for putting those words into action!
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Janie Hermann
Jan 26 2011
I was initially very excited to read this announcement. Brilliant idea to release digital books at a reasonable rate that enhance the mission of TED. However, as a librarian at a public library, my excitement soon subsided when I realized that they would be available only in Kindle format which will prevent libraries from purchasing them and adding them to their expanding collections of eBooks that we make available to our patrons. My hope is that TED will explore releasing the books under a license that will allow libraries to purchase and add them to our collections or work with a vendor such as OverDrive that is willing to work with libraries and provide us content for our customers to use.
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Anwar Dafa-Alla
Jan 26 2011
Sounds promising :)
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malte hagemeister
Jan 26 2011
great idea! i’m a fan already.
but: through my german amazon account one book costs $5,74 instead of $2,99…
“includes VAT & free international wireless delivery via Amazon Whispernet”
i guess amazon is to blame. but i hope to see it in the iBook store soon, seems to be different there..
Lourdes Cahuich
Jan 26 2011
Are you going to use the translations of the talks to develop TEDbooks in other languajes? That would be awesome!
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Jenny
Jan 26 2011
I hope you’ll consider making these available in another format. Not everyone wants to get on board with the eReader trend. I hope those of us who don’t are important enough to make the material available to us, too! PDFs are inexpensive to make and very appreciated.
- Anum Syeda
  Jan 26 2011
  Hi Jenny, you will also be able to access the books on your PC (and other devices): http://www.amazon.com/gp/feature.html/ref=kcp_pc_mkt_lnd?docId=1000426311 You just have to download the Kindle app which is available for free.
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Jonas Chau
Jan 26 2011
Great idea! (the covers could be a little bit more attractive?)
Fernando Diaz de la Serna
Jan 27 2011
Why only Kindle? Why only PC and MAC users? What about Linux users? I agree that PDF files is a good idea since they can be read in any platform and thus reach more people. Not every one has a Kindle. A very good idea for Kindle users as of now. The rest of mankind is left behind.
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Akihiro Hamada Photography
Jan 27 2011
TED is my favorite(^^)
Pedro Rosario
Jan 27 2011
I second Jenny. Not all of us use Kindle, and I’m not thinking about buying one any time soon. PDF would be nice. Please, don’t limit yourself to the Amazon.com market.
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Rufus Curnow
Jan 27 2011
Are these also going to be made available on amazon.co.uk?
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