Judge dismisses US booksellers’ DRM class action against Amazon, publishers
In the US, Federal Judge Jed Rakoff has dismissed a class action against Amazon and the big six publishers that was filed by three independent bookstores in February, reports Publishers...
ALIA: ebooks to account for 50% of library collections by 2020
The Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA) has predicted that ebooks will account for 50% of library collections by 2020 and that this ratio will be maintained for the foreseeable...
New Copia-powered online stores launched
A number of Copia-powered online stores have been launched in the past few months. Some of the stores are ebooks-only, while others sell a mixture of print and ebooks. The...
Barnes & Noble launches Australian ebookstore app
US bookseller Barnes & Noble has launched Australian and other international Nook ebookstores, which are accessible via an app for devices with Windows 8.1. The move gives users in 32 countries and...
Optus launches ebookstore
Australian telecommunications company Optus is now selling ebooks. The Optus ebookstore, which also sells audiobooks, was launched on 11 November. The store is powered by OverDrive, with ebooks available in EPUB...
Amazon launches Kindle store in Australia
Amazon has launched a Kindle store in Australia and is now selling locally published ebooks. The Kindle store went live this morning at www.amazon.com.au, a domain name that the retailer...
Adelaide Writers’ Week launches Copia-powered ebookstore
Adelaide Writers’ Week (AWW) has launched an ebookstore that is powered by Copia. The ebookstore went live at the end of October to coincide with the launch of the 2014...
2013 Softlink survey finds 81% of school library budgets unchanged or decreased
In Softlink’s fourth annual Australian School Library Survey, 81% of respondents have reported that their school library budget has remained the same or decreased over the past 12 months. The...
HarperCollins goes direct-to-consumer with CS Lewis ebooks
HarperCollins has launched two new websites that sell CS Lewis ebooks direct to consumers, reports the Bookseller. The websites www.cslewis.com and www.narnia.com are the result of a partnership between HarperCollins...
International library news
Iranian and German libraries sign memorandum to restore rare manuscripts The National Library and Archives of Iran (NLAI) and the Berlin State Library have signed a memorandum of understanding to...
Whitcoulls suspends ebookstore
New Zealand bookselling chain Whitcoulls has suspended its Kobo-powered ebookstore due to ‘recent publicity surrounding ebook publishing through automated feeds provided by Kobo’. In a statement on the Whitcoulls website,...
Pan Macmillan, Bloomsbury sign with Wheelers ebook platform
ALS Library Services has announced that ebooks from Pan Macmillan and Bloomsbury are now available to Australian and New Zealand users of the Wheelers ePlatform library lending service. ALS managing...
Big W launches ebookstore
Australian discount department store Big W is now selling ebooks. The Big W ebookstore, which is separate to the retailer’s main website, launched this morning and can be accessed here. The...
Libiro ebookstore opens for self-published and small-press titles
In the US, the Libiro ebookstore for self-published and small-press titles has been launched by self-published author Ben Galley and designer Teague Fullick, reports Forbes. The website provides an alternative to...
French and German book trades call for government ebook policy
In France and Germany, publishers and booksellers associations are calling for their national governments to implement a policy to protect the ebook trade from big retailers, reports the Bookseller. At...
US publisher launches ebook-bundling program for entire list
In the US, publisher PM Press has launched an ebook-bundling program for its entire list, reports Publishers Weekly. The Paperback Plus! program offers customers a free ebook edition with nearly...
More than 23 million consumer accounts to receive ebook payments in the US
In the US, the owners of more than 23 million consumer accounts have been notified that they are eligible to receive payments from the settlements reached by publishers in their...
Sylvia Day tops first ebook bestseller chart from the ‘Bookseller’
In the UK, US author Sylvia Day has topped the Bookseller’s first monthly ebook bestseller chart. Day’s ebook Entwined with You (Penguin) sold 201,053 copies in the UK in June, making...
‘The Bookseller’ to publish monthly ebook charts
In the UK, the Bookseller will publish monthly ebook rankings with sales figures from major UK publishers from next month. This will be the first time that regular ebook sales...
Majority of ex-Booki.sh stores unlikely to sell ebooks before Christmas
Independent booksellers Readings, Avid Reader, Gleebooks, Fullers, Imprints, Mary Ryan’s and Books for Cooks have confirmed to Books+Publishing that they are no longer selling ebooks following the closure of the...