Apple will launch a fully fledged iBookstore in Japan this year. Kobo, Kindle and Google all launched Japanese ebookstores in 2012 — greasing the wheels for Apple’s launch in a country that has been slow to embrace ebooks. Read more »
There’s no lack of iPad mini covers for sale. BookBook just added their own, which makes your small Apple tablet look like a classic, old book. It still protects the iPad mini though and you can prop up the tablet for typing or video enjoyment. Read more »
Apple’s ‘hobby’ of improving the TV-viewing experience has graduated to ‘intense interest’. But what chance does Cupertino have of working with broadcasters? More in Europe than at home, analysts say. Read more »
News Corp. has said it is finally shutting down The Daily, the iPad-only newspaper it launched in 2011. Although the media giant should be given some credit for experimenting with a new medium, there were obvious signs that The Daily was doomed from the start. Read more at GigaOM »
Many publishers seem to assume that the best way to publish their content online is to try and recreate the look and feel of the printed product they are trying to replace, but a better approach is to strip away everything that isn’t absolutely necessary. Read more at GigaOM »
I’m looking to self-publish my writing, so I took a look at a bunch of different Mac apps that can create ebooks. The best I found were Apple’s Pages, Adobe InDesign, and Scrivener. Here’s a look the pros and cons of each program. Read more at GigaOM »
We take a look at the new ebooks software Apple updated on Tuesday. The new scrolling view and social sharing of iBooks passages are interesting features updates, but may not be for everyone. Read more at GigaOM »
Apple introduced a bunch of new products Tuesday, October 23rd, including the anticipated debut of the iPad Mini as well as a new iPad, extremely thing new iMac, and a new 13-inch MacBook Pro. Here’s how events unfolded in San Jose, Calif. Read more at GigaOM »
Barnes & Noble’s new Nook HD tablets, priced starting at $199, aim to stand out from the pack with reader-centric features and enhanced reading experiences for magazines and catalogs. The company’s goal is to drive book discovery and purchasing through the tablets in new ways. Read more at GigaOM »
With the launch of Nook Video, Barnes & Noble will begin selling digital movies and TV episodes across devices. The company plans to release Nook Video apps, and the service will be available in the US and UK. Pricing and other details are unclear. Read more »
With the ebook pricing settlement recently approved, and the Department of Justice’s trial against Apple, Macmillan and Penguin set to begin next June, Apple has subpoenaed Amazon in a Washington State court. Read more »
Last December, the European Commission began investigating Apple and five book publishers for allegedly conspiring to set ebook prices. Now the EC, Apple and four of the publishers have reached a preliminary agreement that largely mirrors the terms of the ebook settlement in the U.S. Read more »
A lawyer in the high profile case over ebook price fixing is hoping a line of poetry will persuade a judge to stop the proceedings. Meanwhile, the judge said she will not collect a price-fixing refund as new prices go into effect today. Read more »
Any subscription music service from Apple could fundamentally alter the entertainment business. But it may come only when iTunes’ current gas runs out, and we’re not quite there yet. Read more »
Apple is updating its iTunes desktop software with a new UI that makes it look more like an iOS app. iTunes comes with wall-to-wall browsing, a new mini player, cloud integration and the ability for artists to share photos with fans. Read more at GigaOM »
Apple didn’t want to compete with Amazon on ebook prices. But it is already showing that it is more than willing to do so. And if customers are drawn to Apple’s new low prices on ebooks, it’s possible to envision the company’s ebook market share rising. Read more »
Last week, a federal judge approved the DOJ’s proposed settlement with Simon & Schuster, Hachette and HarperCollins for allegedly conspiring with Apple to set ebook prices. What does the settlement mean for ebook prices now? Read more »
A surprise ruling last week will force publishers to tear up their e-book contracts with retailers. The ruling is scheduled to go into effect in the next few days and, if it does, Amazon and others will be allowed to slash the price of e-books. A prominent lawyer has filed a Hail Mary brief to stop the process. Read more »
A fuss about Bruce Willis and iTunes reminded people that our kids can’t inherit our digital media because we don’t own it in the first place. Here are some practical ways around that. Read more at GigaOM »
Cyber-squatting has been around for years but one Chinese man has especially aggressive in grabbing the names of popular US start-ups like Square and Etsy. More troubling for the companies, the man is also filing for trademarks. Read more at GigaOM »
State governments, which are suing publishers and Apple for fixing e-book prices, have finally said just how much each consumer will get in a proposed $69 million settlement. We have all the details. Read more »
Amazon says the Kindle Fire is sold out, meaning the company will definitely announce a new tablet at its press event next week. Meanwhile, Amazon says the Fire makes up 22% of the U.S. tablet market — suggesting actual sales far lower than early analyst estimates. Read more »
Ebook buyers in 54 states and territories are set to receive $69 million in a settlement between the states and HarperCollins, Hachette and Simon & Schuster. Those who bought agency-priced ebooks between April 2010 and May 2012 are eligible for payment if the settlement goes through. Read more »
The Department of Justice wants the court to accept its proposed ebook pricing settlement with Apple and book publishers, but presiding Judge Denise Cote is allowing more parties who oppose the settlement — the Authors Guild and attorney Bob Kohn — to weigh in as amici curiae. Read more »
The implications of Apple’s recent billion-dollar victory over Samsung in a patent-infringement case go beyond the specifics of this particular battle — the reality is the war over software and design patents is bad not just for individual companies but arguably for society as a whole. Read more at GigaOM »
Samsung has suffered a massive defeat at the hands of Apple in the first major patent trial of the smartphone wars. The ruling appears to be a clear win for Apple which could help entrench the iPhone maker’s power in the marketplace. Read more at GigaOM »
Reports say the Apple-Samsung verdict is in. The case has large implications for the smartphone and mobile industry. We will be reporting shortly on whether the jury finds either side infringed the other’s intellectual property. Read more at GigaOM »
In a filing late Wednesday in response to Apple and book publishers, the Department of Justice reiterates its claim that agency pricing and the alleged conspiracy have resulted in “unmistakable consumer harm,” but refuses to release its ebook pricing analysis. Read more »
Apple wants to give users of its planned cable set-top-box the ability to start any program at any given time, according to a new report by The Wall Street Journal. That sounds good on paper, but existing cloud DVRs show that it’s easier said than done. Read more at GigaOM »
Along with Apple, publishers Penguin and Macmillan and the Authors Guild submitted filings criticizing the DOJ’s proposed ebook settlement on Wednesday. They argue that the DOJ has not provided analysis of Amazon’s ebook pricing and say the settlement goes too far. Read more »
Apple says the DOJ’s proposed settlement with three publishers is unlawful because it requires Apple — which is not settling — to terminate its contracts with those publishers. A trial is needed, Apple says, as well as more scrutiny of Amazon’s role in the lawsuit. Read more »
Amazon launched a “Send to Kindle” extension for Google Chrome that lets users send articles to their Kindle. Other services, like Pocket and Instapaper, can do the same thing. Which one should you use? Read more »
In an amicus brief responding to the DOJ’s proposed ebook pricing settlement against Apple and publishers, attorney Bob Kohn says the DOJ unwittingly showed that Amazon used predatory pricing on ebooks, and asks that the DOJ’s investigation of Amazon be turned over to the court. Read more »
Barnes & Noble dropped prices on its Nook Tablets and Nook Color on Sunday, bringing the price of the Nook Tablet 16 GB in line with Amazon’s Kindle Fire and Google’s 8 GB Nexus 7. The bookstore chain has failed to gain much tablet market share. Read more »
Digital self-publishing site Smashwords is making it easier for self-published authors to get their ebooks into libraries. The site is allowing certain libraries to buy Smashwords titles in bulk, and is also adding custom library pricing options for its authors. Read more »
Federal regulators confirmed a record-breaking fine related to Google’s use of advertising cookies to trick browsers and overcome default privacy settings. Read more at GigaOM »
As a verdict on the DOJ’s proposed ebook pricing settlement with three publishers approaches, Apple has requested and received permission to file another response to the settlement. Apple has also requested a hearing on the settlement, which the DOJ opposes. Read more »
The Huffington Post has dropped the price of its iPad magazine to zero, and News Corp.’s The Daily has chopped almost a third of its staff — more evidence that the dream many publishers had about the iPad being their savior is still far from reality. Read more at GigaOM »
The Berlin startup, which has been quietly developing its technology duirng a bootstrapped first couple of years, has gone into closed beta while revealing funding from VCs and SoundCloud and GameForge co-founders Read more at GigaOM »
Apple’s legal tactics are as carefully designed as its products. Here’s a look at Apple’s distinct efforts to wrap its gadgets in a legal forcefield and drive away competitors. Read more at GigaOM »
