Press Release: Simon & Schuster Launches Books Section With Social Media Platform Milq

Milq was founded on the belief that the ingredients exist for a golden age of curation and discovery that is being held back by the feed-based structures of current social media. Virtually all content is now digitally available and shareable. Milq, which is free to join, is custom designed to strip out the noise and harness the collective wisdom of its members to create a highly curated, organized and seamlessly playable experience of 'the great stuff' across culture. Content is organized thematically in community curated micro channels called Beads. Users can follow Beads and collect posts they love to create an enduring cultural collection.

A Milq member starts a Bead by asking a question relating to Music, Film & TV, Comedy, Sports, Fashion, Food & Drink, Art & Design, or Ideas. For example: Cool New Music Artists? Greatest Sports Plays Ever? Bill Murray at His Best? Chase Scenes? Members join the conversation by posting answers to the question using video or audio from YouTube, Vimeo, SoundCloud and soon more sources, all of which are searched from inside Milq. Milq marries its community's curation with powerful machine learning algorithms to surface the best content and to create a customized flow of content for each member based on their individual taste.

The three co-founders of Milq share a passion for curation and discovery. Co-founders and Co-CEOs Don MacKinnon and Jordan Jacobs met in 2006 through their passion for music. MacKinnon was the founder of Hear Music, a chain of 23 innovative music retail stores focused on supporting emerging artists and driving music discovery. In 1999, MacKinnon sold Hear Music to Starbucks and, as Vice President, Music & Entertainment for Starbucks, developed the company's strategic music and entertainment platform. Jacobs developed and was an executive producer of the Emmy-nominated, The New York Times Top 10 TV series "Spectacle," hosted by Elvis Costello and featuring guests including Bono, Bruce Springsteen, Lou Reed, Zooey Deschanel, Herbie Hancock and President Bill Clinton.