In brief
ProQuest completes EBL acquisition ProQuest has announced the completion of its acquisition of Ebook Library (EBL) from the Ebook Corporation. The EBL platform offers approximately 300,000 ebooks from more than 500 publishers to...
European booksellers warn against closed ebook ‘ecosystems’
European booksellers have urged the European Commission to act over big retailers’ use of closed ebook ‘ecosystems’, reports the Bookseller. At the European and International Booksellers Federation (EIBF) conference held...
Jobs to Murdoch: HarperCollins had three options for ebook pricing
As Apple prepares to face the US Department of Justice (DOJ) in a courtroom on 3 June over the DOJ’s ongoing ebook pricing lawsuit, an email from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs...
International Library News
Baker & Taylor launches axisReader app for ebook lending Library distributor Baker & Taylor has launched its axisReader app, which allows library patrons to download and read ebooks, reports PaidContent....
Survey: almost 90% of Chinese read online; few satisfied with quality
In China, almost 90% of people have read books online, but few are satisfied with the quality of ebooks, reports Xinhuanet News. In a survey conducted and published by China Youth Daily...
Kobo launches online game contest featuring ‘Inferno’-inspired ebooks from Writing Life author
Kobo has created an online game contest featuring three new ebooks from one of its self-published authors to tie in with Dan Brown’s new book Inferno, which was released worldwide...
Sony opens ebookstore in Australia
Sony has opened its Reader Store in Australia, offering a range of local and international ebooks. The Reader Store has previously been available in the US, UK, Canada, Germany, Austria and Japan....
Lilydale Books opens ebookstore on ReadCloud
Victorian bookseller Lilydale Books has opened an ebookstore using ReadCloud, called Lilydale eBooks. The 25-year-old bookseller specialises in school books and educational supplies for primary and secondary schools. The retail...
QBD launches first local Copia-powered ebookstore
Bookselling chain QBD has become the first Australian retailer to launch an ebookstore powered by Copia. The QBD ebookstore is now live and is integrated with the existing QBD website....
Jane Curry Publishing launches digital-first imprint
Independent publisher Jane Curry Publishing (JCP) has launched a new digital-first imprint called Storyworks. The first title to be published under the Storyworks imprint is Partners, a debut novel by...
Bloomsbury to launch digital-first YA imprint
Bloomsbury will launch a digital-first imprint for young adult, teen and new adult fiction in the second half of this year. Bloomsbury Spark is currently accepting unsolicited submissions for a...
International Library News
Hachette US to supply full ebook catalogue to libraries In the US, Hachette has announced that it will make its full catalogue of ebooks available to libraries, reports Publishers Weekly....
German ereading company launches Australian, New Zealand ebookstores
Berlin-based ereading company txtr has launched ebookstores in Australia and New Zealand. The stores officially launched at the beginning of February and each store currently sells approximately 700,000 ebooks, including...
Free ebook website Obooko launches in the UK
Obooko, a website offering free ebooks, is set to launch in the UK, reports the Bookseller. A UK-based company that has operated in the US market for the past three years, Obooko.com offers thousands...
Tens of thousands of free ebooks given away in Chinese ‘price war’
Two of China’s largest online booksellers made thousands of ebooks available to download for free earlier this month, reports the Bookseller. DangDang.com, which claims to be China’s ‘biggest specialist online...
German court rejects sale of secondhand ebooks
A German court has ruled that used ebooks cannot be resold by owners, reports Publishers Weekly. In its decision the German District Court of Bielefeld ruled that ‘unlike physical works,...
Penguin soon to resolve ebook price-fixing charges with DOJ, EU
Penguin is close to resolving ebook price-fixing charges in the US and EU ahead of its planned merger with Random House, reports Publishers Weekly. In the US, where Penguin is...
JB HiFi launches ebookstore
Australian electronics retailer JB HiFi has launched an ebookstore. The store, which went live on 22 April, is part of the retailer’s NOW platform, which also sells digital music. Among the local publishers...
International Library News
UK publishers to use Ingram’s CoreSource platform for legal deposit of ebooks In the UK, Ingram Content Group has announced that it has extended its CoreSource ebook platform to allow...
International Library News
Simon & Schuster makes ebooks available to libraries for the first time Simon & Schuster is making its ebooks available to libraries for the first time in a one-year trial...