Medium acquires Paris-based book reading app Glose

Medium is acquiring Paris-based Glose for an undisclosed sum. Glose lets you buy, download and read books on your devices via its iOS, Android, and web apps. 

Glose has turned the reading activity into a multiplayer experience, where you can create a library, share notes with your followers and start a conversation. While there are social platforms that allow you to talk about books like Goodreads, Glose’s distinctive point is that social features are intrinsically linked to reading features. There are also some gamification features on the platform, such as serial rewards that help you stay motivated while reading the books.

Glose’s one-touch highlighting and interpretation features are reminiscent of Medium’s similar features on this front. With Glose, you can highlight text in any reading application on your phone or tablet. The company is also partnering with 20,000 publishers so that you can purchase e-books directly from the application.

Glose has recently launched a separate service called Glose Education. As the name suggests, this version is compatible for universities and high schools. In Glose Education, teachers can give homework and it is possible to read a book as a group. More than 1 million people have used Glose to date; 25 universities, including Stanford and Columbia University, are enrolled in Glose Education. 

After the acquisition, the Glose team will remain in Paris, which means Medium will open its first office outside the US. Glose will continue its partnerships with writers, publishers, schools and institutions.