Indigo launches RECO, the definitive book recommendation app built by and for booklovers

Indigo's newest stand-alone, free iOS app lets users discover, share, capture, and discuss great books.

TORONTO, July 20, 2016 /CNW/ - Indigo (TSX: IDG) is pleased to announce the launch of RECO, the first iOS mobile application that provides users with access to a  global community of friends and influencers to  discover, share, capture, and discuss books through an easy-to-use and beautifully designed mobile experience.  RECO's book recommendations are curated and shared by a trusted community of friends and experts rather than through the impersonal suggestions of an algorithm, as is widely used by other services.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160720/391440)

"As a lifelong booklover, nothing brings me more joy than sharing a book I love with my friends," says Heather Reisman, RECO co-founder and Indigo's Chief Executive Officer. "RECO is a platform for everyone to share the joy of reading and nothing beats getting a recommendation from someone whose opinion I trust."

Krishna Nikhil, Indigo's EVP of Print and Strategy, and co-founder of RECO, adds, "Everyone agrees the best book recommendations come from friends, but we all spend too much time reading reviews from strangers and trusting algorithms to tell us what to read next, often with mixed results. RECO solves this problem by bringing personal book recommendations from people you trust right to your mobile device."

Features of RECO:

• Connect & Share: RECO allows users to share their favourite books in the app quickly and easily, complete with a beautiful cover image and short recommendation message.  Users can post recommendations directly to Facebook, with additional sharing functionality through email, text, Twitter and LinkedIn.  As well, users can publish complete book lists that anyone can subscribe to.
  
  
• Discover: RECO helps users find great books personalized to their interests, curated by friends and trusted experts. Upon sign-up, users are led through a "smart" personalization exercise to build their specific interest profile. Based on common interests, RECO helps users find and subscribe to curated book lists from experts and other booklovers who share similar passions.  Further, over eight million books in RECO have been tagged with rich interest profiles to help users discover their perfect next read.
  
  
• Capture: RECO makes it simple for users to keep track of books they both want to read and have finished reading. Books discovered through recommendations from friends are captured in a simple, unified reading list. Users can also purchase books in any format directly from Indigo and Kobo in Canada, and the leading online book and ebook retailers in the US and internationally.
  
  
• Discuss: RECO provides users a place to discuss great books with their friends directly in the app. In addition, RECO has built a proprietary user matching algorithm that leverages individuals' interests and RECO activity to introduce them to like-minded people. RECO has no interest in recommending books directly to users without context. Instead, RECO aspires to connect booklovers based on common interests, who will then go on to provide great book Recommendations to each other and spark new conversations.

Indigo believes that books, more than any other medium, have the power to entertain, inspire and educate. Booklovers are continually in pursuit of their next great read and the mission of RECO is to cultivate a community of likeminded booklovers who motivate each other to read better books, more often. RECO already has a growing community of notable authors and influencers such as Margaret Atwood and Neil Pasricha, with whom users can connect directly.  The RECO iOS app was developed in close partnership with Toronto-based Retail Innovation Lab Kinetic Café and is the first new technology venture from Indigo since it founded Kobo in 2009. 

As one of Canada's great tech success stories, Kobo became an early leader in the global eReading business, garnering millions of users around the world.  In early 2012, just 23 months after Indigo launched Kobo, it was sold to Japanese online giant Rakuten for $315 million, and continues to operate as a leading global eReading company. Indigo's successful experience with the creation of Kobo underscored the need to continue to invest in innovative experiences for booklovers, in every channel. RECO is now available for download for free on iOS devices through the app store, with an Android app coming soon.

About Indigo
Indigo is a publicly traded Canadian company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (IDG). As the largest book, gift and specialty toy retailer in Canada, Indigo operates in all provinces under different banners including Indigo Books & Music; Indigo Books, Gifts, Kids; Indigospirit; Chapters; and Coles. The online channel, indigo.ca, offers a one-stop online shop with a robust selection of books, toys, home décor, stationery, and gifts.

Indigo founded the Indigo Love of Reading Foundation in 2004 to address the underfunding of public elementary school libraries.   Every year the Love of Reading Foundation makes grants to high-needs elementary schools so they can transform their libraries with the purchase of new books and educational resources.  To date, the Love of Reading Foundation has committed over $23.5 million to 2,600 elementary schools, benefitting more than 750,000 students. 

To learn more about Indigo, please visit the Our Company section at indigo.ca.

About RECO
RECO is a social book recommendation platform built by Indigo, a publicly traded Canadian company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (IDG). Through its free iOS app, RECO provides readers a place to discover, share, capture, and discuss great books through Recommendations from friends and trusted experts. RECO is a global platform that allows readers to purchase books in any format from a wide range of retailers, depending on region. To learn more about RECO, please visit RECO.com or download RECO for free.

SOURCE Indigo Books & Music Inc.

Image with caption: "RECO, the first iOS mobile application of its kind, allows users to discover, share, capture, and discuss great books. (CNW Group/Indigo Books & Music Inc.)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20160720_C7592_PHOTO_EN_738356.jpg

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