Match.com Meets Goodreads

The social power behind Goodreads is obvious the minute you start seeing what your friends are reading. Well, it’s obvious if you’re a reader. Real time updates about something you really care about, books and your friends.

So the newest book related online endeavor seems to be a great idea: a partnership between Penguin Books (in the UK) and Match.com. At Penguin Dating, lovelorn bookworms can find the perfect someone based on reading habits and favorite authors. Story has it that a few Penguin authors found their perfect matches on dating sites and the idea has just been honed since.

They have gotten 500 subscribers in the first 3 days and with promotions in nearly 2 million paperbacks, they’re sure to get more. The service is free for making a profile and subscription-based for contacting other members.

Something to Think About: The success of niche online services are often dependent on promotion to spark initial interest. It remains to be seen if Penguin has enough of a promotion push to get the word out but their success on other digital projects like We Tell Stories, I have high hopes.