HarperCollins announced the official opening of public voting for The BookSmash Challenge, a contenst challenging developers to create new digital products that "break the binding" and reimagine the book. The creators of the three winning projects will receive a total of $25,000 in cash prizes.
After receiving 20 applications, the publisher opened voting to the public, who will choose favorite entries in the "Popular Choice" category. Voting will remain open through September 27.
At the same time, a group of judges will review the entries and select a winner and a runner-up, judging the projects on originality of idea, implementation, and potential impact. The judges include entrepreneur and author of Curation Nation Steve Rosenbaum; entertainment industry veteran Paul Vidich; cofounder of N3TWORK and former Apple exec Erik Lammerding; CEO of Live Deal, Inc. Mike Edelhart; HarperCollins chief digital officer Chantal Restivo-Alessi; head of corporate development for betaworks Sam Mendal; and senior v-p and publisher for HarperOne Mark Tauber.
“We are thrilled and inspired by the responses we received to The BookSmash Challenge,” said Restivo-Alessi. “HarperCollins is pleased to be working with authors and developers in order to further expand the digital potential of our creative content.”
All winners will be announced on October 10.
