Open Road Launches Middle Grade, YA Program

Open Road Integrated Media has launched the Fall Hardcover Discovery Initiative, which is aimed at giving exposure to new middle grade and YA hardcovers this fall.

Under the discovery program, publishers can promote up to five middle grade or YA hardcovers, which will be featured in four spots across Open Road’s digital properties, including on the websites of its genre-focused verticals, as well as across multiple editions of its targeted newsletters. Open Road CEO David Steinberger said the new program is an outgrowth of its activation service, which it launched in August to support the sale of frontlist books across all formats. (Open Road has typically focused on promoting backlist titles.) The new program also follows the controversy that erupted in August over Barnes & Noble’s decision to be more selective in the quantities it places for hardcovers, including middle grade and YA.

“The Fall Hardcover Discovery Initiative’s combination of placements harnesses our ability to target both a hyper-specific audience to drive sales, as well as a broader audience to build continued awareness for these middle grade and YA hardcovers,” Mary McAveney, CMO and CRO for Open Road, said in a statement.