Kobo starts selling e-readers directly through its website again
Kobo is now selling its e-readers directly through its website in the U.S. and Canada. Previously, customers had to go to third-party retailers to buy the devices. Read more »
Indie bookstores sue Amazon, big-6 publishers for using DRM to create monopoly on ebooks
photo: Shutterstock / zimmytws
Three independent bookstores have filed a class action suit against Amazon the big-six publishers, alleging that the proprietary DRM Amazon uses on ebooks creates a monopoly. Read more »
Two years and three CEOs later, publisher JV Bookish is ready to help users find their next book
The long-delayed Bookish, a website backed by Hachette, Penguin and Simon & Schuster and designed to promote book discovery and sell books, launched Monday night and is designed to be a one-stop shop for readers looking for their next book. Read more »
Battling Kobo, Amazon launches Kindle e-readers and store in Canada
In an effort to compete against Toronto-based Kobo, Amazon announced Wednesday that it is releasing the Kindle Paperwhite in Canada for the first time and will also sell the basic Kindle there. Amazon launched a Canadian Kindle store in December. Read more »
Google Books, movies and Nexus 7 tablet head to Japan
Google added new Japanese reading features to its ebooks app yesterday and is now selling the Nexus 7, ebooks and movies through the Google Play store in Japan. Kobo expanded to Japan in July, and Kindle is expected to launch there in October. Read more »
Kobo partners with Livraria Cultura to sell e-readers in Brazil
photo: Flickr / gaby_bra
Kobo is partnering with Brazilian bookstore chain Livraria Cultura to sell e-readers and ebooks. Ebook sales makes up less than 1 percent of book sales in Brazil but are expected to grow fast. Kindle also plans to launch in Brazil this year. Read more »
Ebook price drops begin — and Apple is discounting, too
photo: Shutterstock / Thomas Bethge
Just a few days after the approval of the DOJ’s ebook settlement, HarperCollins has entered into new contracts with ebook retailers, and they’re already discounting its titles. What kinds of deals will you get? Read more »
Why e-readers evolved a lot today: Kindle Paperwhite and Kobo Glo
With the releases of the Kindle Paperwhite and Kobo Glo today, we saw an evolution in e-readers. The devices don’t have more tablet-like features, but they should still provide much better reading experiences than older models. Read more at GigaOM »
The “sock puppet” scandal: How to stop fake book reviews online
photo: Shutterstock / Africa Studio
UK thriller author Stephen Leather’s admission that he created fake accounts to review his own books has led to a storm of controversy over bad author behavior and “sock puppet” reviews. Here’s what’s happened so far and how bad author behavior might be fixed. Read more »
Kobo takes aim at Amazon with two new e-readers and a tablet
Though most eyes are on Amazon’s Thursday press conference, Kobo is angling for early attention with its announcement of two new e-readers and a new 7-inch Android tablet called the Arc. How do the devices stack up to the competition? Read more at GigaOM »
States reach $69 million ebook pricing settlement with publishers
photo: Shutterstock
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 »
Kobo replaces Google in ebooks deal with indie bookstores
photo: Kobo
Ebook company Kobo has signed a deal with the American Booksellers Association to allow indie bookstores to sell Kobo ebooks through their websites and stores. The new partnership replaces the ABA’s deal with Google, which had been set to end in January. Read more »
B&N’s Nook will finally launch in the UK (but who’s going to sell it?)
photo: Barnes & Noble
Barnes & Noble will sell its Nook e-readers in the UK starting this October, but at the beginning they will only be available through a website, nook.co.uk. B&N says it will announce partnerships with “leading retailers” soon. Read more »
Smashwords gets more self-published ebooks into libraries
photo: Shutterstock / Gts
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 »
Kobo e-reader and digital bookstore will launch in Japan in July
photo: Kobo
Fittingly for a company that is now owned by Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten, Kobo is officially launching its e-reader and digital bookstore in Japan in July. The Kobo Touch e-reader will be available for pre-order July 2, and a full digital bookstore opens July 19. Read more »
Big e-reader is watching you
photo: Amazon
Amazon, Barnes & Noble and other e-reader companies are collecting data about your e-book reading habits, but they’re keeping their most interesting findings close to the vest. Read more »
With Google backing out, ABA promises indie bookstores new e-book solution by fall
photo: Shutterstock / Gts
Google is ending the affiliate program that allows independent bookstores to sell e-books through their websites, but the American Booksellers Association says it will have a new solution in place “well in advance” of the end of the Google program in January 2013. Read more »
Amazon Publishing makes some e-books available to other retailers
Amazon is selling at least two Amazon Publishing titles in other digital bookstores. Until now, it has sold its e-books exclusively through the Kindle Store. Read more »
Five digital lessons from BookExpo America 2012
This week, the book industry gathered at the ugly, cavernous Javits Center in Manhattan for the largest book trade event in the United States. (“I feel like I’m in Costco,” actress-author Molly Ringwald told the AP.) Here are five digital lessons from the week. Read more »
Social reading, discoverability and other unsolved problems at BEA 2012
Social reading and discoverability are not the same thing, but they have something in common: They’re the things everyone is talking about at BookExpo America this week but nobody has solved. Read more »
Kobo launches e-book self-publishing platform, “Writing Life”
Digital reading company Kobo is launching a competitor to Amazon’s KDP and Barnes & Noble’s PubIt: Kobo Writing Life, a free self-publishing platform for independent authors and publishers. Read more »
Crashing a book on the financial crash: E-book bestsellers breakdown
This weekly feature tells the backstory of how one e-book became a bestseller, and highlights bestselling titles that are selling more copies in digital than in print. This week: Crashing a book about the financial crash. Read more »
Pottermore adds Kobo as a Harry Potter e-book partner
photo: Kobo
Pottermore has partnered with Kobo to make the Harry Potter e-books available on Kobo devices. Pottermore has similar arrangements with Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Sony and Google (but not Apple yet). Read more »
This book plays itself on TV: E-book bestsellers breakdown
photo: Hyperion
This new weekly feature tells the backstory of how one e-book became a bestseller, and highlights bestselling titles that are selling more copies in digital than in print. This week: A book that plays itself on TV. Read more »
E-book bestsellers breakdown: I married a billionaire
This weekly feature tells the backstory of how one e-book became a bestseller, and highlights bestselling titles that are selling better in digital than in print. This week: Marriage to a billionaire. Read more »
E-book bestsellers breakdown: Desert island romance
photo: Flickr / redagainPatti
This new weekly feature tells the backstory of how one e-book became a bestseller, and highlights bestselling titles that are selling better in digital than in print. This week: Two castaways find romance on a desert island…and other bestsellers. Read more »
Kobo heads to Brazil this fall
photo: Flickr / gaby_bra
Kobo will launch in Brazil this fall, VP Todd Humphrey said yesterday. Amazon’s Kindle may get there first. Read more »
The bestsellers breakdown: Titanic takes it
photo: Peabody Essex Museum
Breaking down the e-book bestsellers list: A new weekly feature. Read more »
Kindle rivals advance internationally…slowly
photo: Flickr / Staci D. Kramer
E-reading companies timed announcements around the London Book Fair this week. Read more »
What the DOJ e-book lawsuit means for readers now
photo: Amazon
Last week, the Department of Justice sued Apple and five book publishers for allegedly colluding to set e-book prices. What does the suit mean for readers today and in coming weeks? Read more »
Agency pricing costs consumers $200 million a year? Yeah, right
In a letter to the Senate, Washington-based lobbyist Consumer Federation of America claims “this year the cost to consumers of e-book price fixing will likely exceed $200 million and the abuse will grow dramatically.” How did the CFA calculate that number? Read more »
Cheapest 'Hunger Games' E-Books Are At Kobo — Not Amazon
photo: The Hunger Games movie
Teen dystopian trilogy Hunger Games appears to be on its way to blockbuster-dom, pulling in $19.75 million at the midnight premiere of the… Read more »
Another Chain Says It Won’t Carry Amazon Books, But Does It Matter?
photo: flickr
Canadian bookselling chain Indigo Books & Music is joining Barnes & Noble (NYSE: BKS) and Books-A-Million in their refusal to carry any Amaz… Read more »
Kobo Will Give Away 1 Free E-Book Per Month, With Caveats
photo: Kobo
Amazon (NSDQ: AMZN) recently gave Kindle-owning Prime members a new perk: The Kindle Owners’ Lending Library, which allows them to borrow a… Read more »
An E-Book Gifting Campaign, Starting On Cyber Monday
photo: Open Road Integrated Media
In a holiday season when e-readers are more popular than ever, many consumers still don’t know how to give them to others as gifts. So today… Read more »
Kobo Adds Cheaper Ad-Supported Option For Kobo Touch
photo: Kobo
Taking the lead from Amazon (NSDQ: AMZN), Kobo is now selling a $99.99 Kobo Touch with Offers, $30 off the regular price. Read more »
Comparing E-Readers And E-Reader/Tablets: Kindles, Nooks, Sony, Kobo
Just last month, Amazon (NSDQ: AMZN) rolled out its Kindle Fire, the first Kindle designed as a full media device — not an e-reader with so… Read more »
Muhammad Ali, E-reader Kobo Settle Over Bee/Butterly Slogan
photo: Corbis / I Love Images
An upstart e-reader firm picked the wrong fight when it decided to use boxing legend Muhammad Ali’s slogan without permission in a full-page… Read more »
Kobo Acquired By Japanese E-Commerce Firm Rakuten For $315 Million
E-bookseller and e-reader company Kobo is being acquired by Japanese e-commerce company Rakuten for $315 million. The company says it will c… Read more »
The Bestsellers: Steve Jobs And The Importance Of Pre-Orders
On the official morning of its release, Walter Isaacson’s Steve Jobs is #1 on the Kindle bestseller list, #1 in Apple’s iBookstore and #2 on… Read more »
