The latest reinvention of traditional book publishing comes from California-based start-up Vook, which integrates text, video and social networking to deliver a new entertainment experience.

Available both online and as a mobile application, “vooks” are book-video hybrids that feature short video clips—produced exclusively for each title—interspersed throughout the digital text. The videos are designed to enhance the story, advance the plot in fiction titles and add depth to practical information offered by non-fiction publications, offering visual how-to’s such as cooking demonstrations. The online Vook Reader allows readers to interact with each other via inbuilt social media functions.

Vook launched in October with four debut titles, published in partnership with Simon and Schuster. They have since formed additional publishing relationships with Hachette Filipacchi Media and HarperCollins, and now offer twenty-five Vooks, ranging from romance and thriller novels to instructional non-fiction books, priced between USD 2.99 and USD 16.99.

The company recently introduced MotherVook, a platform that allows publishers to independently create mixed-media versions of their books. It’s also partnering with online video company (and Springwise alumnus) TurnHere to increase video capacity and speed up production of new titles. One to watch! (Related: Spillproof cooking coach: a touchpad made for kitchens.)

Website: www.vook.com
Contact: info@vook.com

Spotted by: Murtaza Ali Patel

Social shopping is something we've been seeing more and more of lately, including sites like Blippy and Estonian WhosRich.me. The latest spotting? Justbought.it, which adds geolocation and an augmented reality twist.

Users of Canadian Justbought.it can take photos of their purchases, share them with their friends through Facebook and Twitter, and comment on the purchases others have made. Google Maps integration allows users to find local friends and deals, while a point system recognizes those who contribute most to the site. A free iPhone app is already available, with versions for Android and Blackberry coming soon. Perhaps most interesting of all, in fact, is that the Android version will include an augmented reality app that lets users walk into a store and see what others on the site have already purchased, the company says. Ultimately, Justbought.it hopes to forge partnerships with online retailers to enable tweets on the site whenever consumers buy something, according to a report on Mashable.

Take one part social shopping, one part mapmania and one part nowism—and add a splash of augmented reality—and you just might have a winning mix. One more to watch!

Website: www.justbought.it
Contact: hello@justbought.it

Spotted by: Sara

As same-sex marriages become increasingly common, so too do the opportunities to help make those weddings happen. Case in point: Equally Wed, a new online publication that gives gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender couples inspiration, ideas and trends for planning their engagements, weddings and honeymoons.

Just launched this week, Equally Wed offers a wide variety of features and departments for same-sex couples. Among them, for instance, are articles and photo galleries spotlighting real weddings of GLBT couples; engagement ideas for the perfect proposal, including tales from readers in their own words; a Q&A section for expert advice on wedding etiquette; and a section on honeymoon destinations visited and researched by gay journalists. A community forum lets readers interact, while a vetted marketplace features gay-friendly wedding vendors throughout the United States. Coming soon is a section for “straight allies.” Equally Wed is a quarterly publication, with a new full issue every season; in the meantime, its Beauty & Grooming, Health & Fitness, Honeymoons, Etiquette and blog sections are updated weekly.

With a buying power projected to exceed $835 billion by next year, there's no denying the substantial Pink Profits potential for those who serve this market well. One to partner with or emulate in other parts of the world...? (Related: Ben & Jerry's Hubby Hubby celebrates gay marriage — Bank targets gay Londoners — Wedding boutique for gay men — TripAdvisor for gay travellers.)

Website: www.equallywed.com
Contact: www.equallywed.com/contact-us.html

Spotted by: Roland Everest

Now that sites like Facebook and Twitter have become a major part of many consumers' lives, there's growing need to bridge the online and offline worlds, as we've noted before. Efforts like HotPrints, News from YOUs and Kodak's new kiosk capabilities all get at that to some extent, and recently we came across two more interesting examples: Famebook and TweetNotebook, both of which embellish custom notebooks with select online content.

With Famebook, Facebook users can create a unique notebook featuring a post from their Facebook feed at the bottom of each page. By connecting to Facebook from the Famebook site, users allow Famebook to access their status updates. If there are fewer than 320 available, Famebook will duplicate some to fill the pages; if there are more, it makes a random selection. Either way, the result is a mostly-blank notebook with one timestamped update on the bottom of each page. Pricing is EUR 18 for a 200-page hardcover notebook or EUR 14 for the 320-page paperback version. Users can choose their own cover post and design.

TweetNotebook, meanwhile, does much the same thing but featuring the user's Twitter posts instead. Customers simply enter their Twitter name on the site, and it automatically populates each page in a blank 320-page notebook with one randomly selected tweet along with its timestamp and URL. As with Famebook, users can customize the cover post and design; three colour choices are available. Pricing on a TweetNotebook is EUR 12.

Both Famebook and TweetNotebook are the creations of Belgian agency Boondoggle. Who will push the OFF=ON integration even further—notepads, t-shirts, laptop skins, bags, anyone...?

Website: www.myfamebook.net — www.tweetnotebook.com
Contact: support@myfamebook.net — support@tweetnotebook.com

Spotted by: Murtaza Ali Patel

Regular Springwise readers may recall food52, the year-long series of weekly recipe contests we wrote about last autumn that will ultimately culminate in a published cookbook highlighting the winners. That project is still under way—it's nearing week 40 now—but recently we came across an Australian venture that brings much the same concept to the world of cartoons.

Billed as "the world's first social cartoon character", Eric the Circle is the story of—sure enough—a circle named Eric. Eric is not just any circle: he lives a full and active life, as evidenced by the hundreds of cartoons contributed so far that depict some of its highlights. Participants simply sign on to Eric's web page and then begin creating their own cartoons about him. A drawing tool on the site makes drawing and adding captions easy. Those cartoons can then be published on the site gallery; they can also be publicised using Twitter, Facebook, web pages and blogs. Viewers can vote on the submitted cartoons, and those that fare the best will be published in a book and syndicated to other web pages. The creators of those winners, meanwhile, will be rewarded financially, the site's founders say.

There are few things we love more here at Springwise than to see the prolific members of Generation Cash get compensated for their efforts. When was the last time your brand tapped the creative crowds—and rewarded them? (Related: Crowdsourcing site helps publishers find new authors — Greeting-card maker pays for top crowdsourced designs — Author's next thriller will be cowritten by the crowds.)

Website: www.ericthecircle.com
Contact: www.ericthecircle.com/contact

Spotted by: Douglas Aplin