http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Business/TIL_joins_hands_with_A1Books_of_US/articleshow/3310719.cms
TIL joins hands with A1Books 31 Jul 2008, 1611 hrs IST,TIMESOFINDIA.COM Times Internet Limited, part of India's largest media house, Times Group, has made a strategic investment equivalent to a 50 per cent stake in Webnotions Books India Private Ltd. Webnotions has entered India as the largest online book marketplace under the brand www.a1books.co.in . Webnotions USA was founded in 1995 by Mr Shinu Gupta. The company is based in Netcong, New Jersey and has 70 employees. The India branch based in Noida, UP, commenced operations in December 2007. As part of this investment, the Times Group will create value for A1Books by providing brand support to expand its growing market. A1Books will make available over a million book titles on TIL's indiatimes.com and will in turn capitalise on the latter's huge user base in India. A1Books brings in its book-focused technology platform where Indian book publishers, distributors, importers and retailers can register and sell their inventory. A1Books has partnerships with leading global distributors and fulfillment services will enable it to sell foreign titles in the country. Customers can simply log on to the website, pick a book of their choice and have it delivered to their doorstep at a reasonable price. Said TIL Chief Executive Officer, Dinesh Wadhawan: "At TIL, we aim to partner with companies looking at creating sustainable competitive differentiation through focus on brands and technology. A1Books has a direct consumer-connect business. With their strong technology platform and partnerships with international and Indian publishers, we are sure to gain significant presence in this space which will give both A1Books and TIL a competitive advantage". According to Shinu Gupta, founder and CEO of A1Books, "India has had a strong untapped need for a marketplace with superior service which offers the best books at reasonable prices. With our technical and business expertise in this area, our highly competent team has built a powerful website with an unbeatable collection of books. However, the most crucial aspect of this venture was to get ourselves in front of the Indian public and make people aware of this great book resource. With the support and resources of Times Group, we can focus on enhancing the customer experience and grow the online book market in India. We are poised to make the leap from being the best-kept secret in the book industry to establishing ourselves as the preferred destination for online book buyers."
