Apparently Google launched an ebook venture in Korea earlier this month, with participation from publishers including Woongjin, Ridibooks and Munhakdongne Publishing. An unnamed official told The Korea Herald (found via The Digital Reader), “We picked Korea since the adoption rate of smart devices, including smartphones, are one of the highest among other nations.” Korea Herald Yale University Press announced that they have received a grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation “to launch extensive market research and development of a new electronic model for illustrated books.” The award and subsequent work is intriguing since so far illustrated books have lagged […]
ebookstores
eNews: Amazon Publishing Promotes Sales Figures; Kobo Pairs With Livraria Cultura In Brazil; And More
In a letter to agents obtained by paidContent, vp, Amazon Publishing Jeff Belle touted supposed sales figures on a handful of titles released by the company’s West Coast imprints to encourage agents to publish with Amazon, saying he was “energized by the early results.” Among the citations, Belle said the cumulative sales numbers for the 87th Precinct titles by Ed McBain reissued by Thomas & Mercer over the past year exceeded 250,000 units (but that’s across several dozens of books); Sean Chercover’s thriller THE TRINITY GAME, published in July, “is already well on its way to surpassing 100,000 copies,” and […]
Harper Starts Selling Discountable eBooks Under New Agreements–At Higher List Prices
At least some new pricing for ebooks is starting in advance of any indication from the court whether an appeal might stay formal imposition of the settlement with the Department of Justice. Spokesperson Erin Crum told Publishers Lunch Monday afternoon, “HarperCollins has reached agreements with our e-retailers that are consistent with the final judgment.” The results of those new agreements–including discounts on at least some ebooks–were reflected during the day on Harper ebooks, first noticed at Amazon and BooksOnBoard.com, which had emailed customers offering 24 percent off Harper ebooks this week as they “welcome[d] back discounts for HarperCollins ebook titles.” […]
Ingram Will Distribute Kobo eReaders To ABA Member Stores
Now that the ABA is partnering with Kobo to supply ebooks to independent bookstores, the organization has announced that Ingram will serve as the exclusive distributor of Kobo devices to ABA member stores. For now, Ingram is authorized to wholesale devices only to ABA stores; the company says permitting them to wholesale to other accounts “will be a Kobo decision.” ABA member stores who order Kobo devices from Ingram will also take part in a special launch incentive timed for the holiday season that includes free displays and demo devices, an unspecified cash bonus for participating, rebates for sell-through, and […]
Amazon Will Ship Three Kindle Fire HD Tablets, Including $499 4G With $50/Year Data Plan
The theme of Amazon’s Thursday afternoon press conference in Santa Monica was not so much the device particulars as ceo Jeff Bezos’s revised explanation of their goal and purpose: “People don’t want gadgets anymore. They want services. They want services that improve over time.” And “Kindle Fire is a service.” Bezos also explained, “We want to make money when people USE our devices, not when they BUY our devices. That is better alignment.” (Last year’s opening pitch for Kindle Fire was that “what we’re doing is making premium products and offering them at non-premium prices.”) The new mantra translates into […]
eNews: First Kobo Announces New eReader and Tablet Devices; Amazon Product Launch Rumor Mill
As is now their custom, Kobo took the unassuming route of announcing its latest line of ereaders and tablets by press release on Wednesday morning, a few hours before Amazon is set to launch their newest devices in Santa Monica at a press conference (at 1:30 Eastern). Clearly glo(w)ing ereaders will be abundant this fall, following Nook’s successful launch of their GlowLight model and an authentic-seeming leak of the Kindle Paperwhite: Kobo will ship the $129 Glo (eInk reader with frontlit screen) and $80 Mini (smaller 5″ touchscreen) on October 1, with the 7″ Arc tablet, priced at $199 (8GB) and […]