E-Books

On October 7, The Magic of Books post described this writer's passion for books and why they are going the way of the dodo and passenger pigeon at a cost we are now just beginning to comprehend. As follow up, Google has just announced Google Editions, a way for people to buy and download any book able to be read by any digital device other then Kindle, (Amazon, are you reading this?) an e-book reader only able to download content from Amazon.

"Google Inc. is launching a new online service that will let readers buy electronic versions of books and read them on such gadgets as cell phones, laptops and possibly e-book devices.

The company said Google Editions marks its first effort to earn revenue from its ambitious Google Books scanning project, which attempts to make millions of printed books available online. Although the scanning program has faced complaints from authors and publishers over copyright, Google Editions will cover only books submitted and approved by the copyright holders when it launches next year.

The books bought through Google Editions will be accessible on any device that has a Web browser, including smart phones, netbooks and personal computers and laptops, putting Google in competition with Amazon.com Inc. and its Kindle e-book reader.

The reason why this will, IMHO, succeed is the fact that...

Consumers can buy directly from Google or from any number of online booksellers and other retail partners using the Google Editions platform. Google will actually host the e-books and make them searchable.

"We expect the majority will go to retail partners not to Google," Turvey said at the 61st Frankfurt Book Fair. "We are a wholesaler, a book distributor."

Google will try to keep transactions simple, Turvey said, possibly by using its existing Google Checkout platform. Google will collect 55 percent of the revenue and turn a "vast majority" of that to the retailers. The rest will go to the book's publisher, who will set prices.

If the books are being sold directly to consumers by Google, it will take 37 percent and give publishers 63 percent.

Turvey expects the program will start with 400,000 to 600,000 books in the first half of 2010.

Books bought through Google Editions will be stored on the device and readable without a live Internet connection.

This new way of distributing content will also work, with modification, for newspapers as seen in a BRT article titled A New Model? Of course Google is on this one deal as well because content is king and getting it out in ways machines can easily access is the name of the game in today's world of transparent and instant connectivity.

Instant gratification isn't fast enough. - Anonymous