Archive for the ‘ereader news’ tag
eReader & Tablet News – 9/13/2010 no comments
Sony has apparently been showing around a flexible epaper prototype. There are pictures but not many details at CNNGO.
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Finally! Seiko has announced the world’s first EPD watch with an active matrix system. Seiko will be releasing three models in December, 2010.
Besides having an epaper display, the new watches have some other cool features:
- Screen resolution 300 dpi
- Receives a time signal from the world’s atomic clocks via radio signal to keep you on time.
- Powered by a self-recharging solar battery; can run for up to nine months on one full charge.
- Has a sleep mode which is activated when the watch is left in darkness and no button is pressed for 72 hours.
- Five different time display options; World time mode lets you choose from 32 cities.
- Perpetual calendar up to December 31, 2060.
- Alarm, LED light, water resistance to 10 bar.
No word yet on pricing.
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E Ink Holdings has announced its earnings (via Digitimes) for August, 2010. Sales were up 16 percent over last year and 2.57 percent over the previous month. Revenue for the month was $50.3 million USD.
E Ink has been ramping up production to meet the increased demand after the prices of ereaders were lowered recently, and expects to maintain higher production rates at least through December.
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Rumors that Apple will introduce both a 5.6-inch and 7-inch version of the iPad after the first of the year keep reappearing. Digitimes also reports that there are more rumors that Apple will use OLED panels in the smaller models.
A 5.6-inch and a 7-inch screen are so similar in size — it doesn’t make sense to me to release both, though 5.6 is definitely more pocketable than a 7-inch device.
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Disney Book Group will be launching Rick Riordan’s new five-book series, The Heroes of Olympus, on October 12, 2010. The launch
of Riordan’s new series is getting the full treatment with its own website and a free webcast of the launch celebration to start at 7pm EST on October 12.
In Heroes of Olympus, Rick Riordan returns to the world of Camp Half-Blood. Here, a new group of heroes will inherit a quest. But to survive the journey, they’ll need the help of some familiar demigods. The Heroes of Olympus is a five book series and will have a new book published each year through 2014. In support of the release of The Lost Hero, Riordan will embark on an 11-city tour launching in Austin, Texas and continues on to Houston, TX; St Louis, MO; Kansas City, MI; Denver, CO; Phoenix, AZ; Salt Lake City, UT; Portland, OR; Los Angeles, CA; San Francisco, CA; and San Antonio, TX.
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It is the 50th anniversary of Green Eggs and Ham, so Oceanhouse Media is having a 50 percent off sale on their Dr. Seuss interactive book apps. The sale starts today and will be for a limited time only. The titles below are included:
- Green Eggs and Ham eBook
- The Cat in the Hat eBook
- Dr. Seuss’s ABC eBook
- One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish eBook
- Yertle the Turtle eBook
- Hop On Pop eBook
- The Lorax eBook
- How the Grinch Stole Christmas! eBook
- Oh, the Places You’ll Go! eBook
- Gertrude McFuzz eBook
- The Big Brag eBook
- Dr. Seuss Camera – The Cat in the Hat Edition
- Dr. Seuss Camera – The Grinch Edition
- Up With A Fish! kid’s game
- Lorax Garden kid’s game
- Grinchmas! kid’s game
- Dr. Seuss Senders card deck
Most of these are $1.99 each for a limited time at the iTunes App Store.
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American Express has announced a partnership with Amazon that will now let you use your Membership Rewards points for purchases at Amazon.
Shopping with Membership Rewards points on Amazon.com is simple. Cardmembers need only complete a one-time registration to securely link their American Express Membership Rewards account to an Amazon.com account.
- Go to Amazon’s membership rewards page
and sign in with an existing Amazon.com account, or create a new one.
- Cardmembers must then follow the instructions to link their Membership Rewards account to their Amazon.com account.
- Membership Rewards points are available immediately for use on Amazon.com any time Cardmembers are shopping.
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eReader & Tablet News 8/21/2010 no comments
Another busy week for ereaders and tablets and all things related. Some of the things I didn’t get to cover elsewhere:
The shipping date for new orders of the latest
generation Kindle 3 has been pushed back again. If you place an order now, your Kindle 3 will be shipping on September 17.
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Overheard at a Kobo company party (via eBooknewser) – the Kobo ereader is rumored to have another price cut coming by Christmas and will be reduced to $99.
Although Barnes & Noble is sometimes credited with starting the brief ebook reader price war that resulted in $139 Kindles and $149 NOOKs, Kobo actually lit the fuse when they released their eReader for $149 – as has been noted by Nate over at The Digital Reader and proudly proclaimed by Kobo itself.
So will this start a new round of price slashing? Not likely. At its current price of $149, the Kobo eReader is too high when compared to the wireless only versions of the Kindle and NOOK as it is a more basic ereader with less features and is based on older hardware. It should be priced at $99 now.
Kobo has also just announced a new way to win a free Kobo eReader. All you need to do for a chance to win one of three eReaders is to follow @Kobo on Twitter. This contest will end on August 30, 2010. All the details and fine print that you could possibly want can be had at Kobo.com.
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Digitimes is reporting that Qualcomm is going to set up a production facility for its Mirasol color displays at the Central Taiwan Science Park in Longtan, Taiwan. Digitimes says that volume production of the 5.7-inch screen that Mirasol has been sampling should begin in early 2012.
Excuse me, but what about the press release from Mirasol dated June 6, 2009, in which Mirasol said that a dedicated fabrication plant built in collaboration with Foxlink and at the same location had commenced operations.
I guess that earlier facility must have only been for making the samples.
If Mirasol is not going to have their color display ready until 2012 I think we can count them out of being used in the first color ereaders. Actually, isn’t the world supposed to end in 2012? We may none of us live long enough to see an actual Mirasol display in an actual product!
E Ink Holdings now appears likely to hold the distinction of being the first color epaper. Hanvon has already been reported as readying an ereader using a color E Ink display for release later this year. Amazon, are you really going to sit by and let Hanvon beat you to market with a color ereader?
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Velocity Micro has the Cruz Reader up for pre-order at its website with an expected shipping date of early September. The Cruz tablet is also available to pre-order and will ship in late September. The Storypad children’s ereader does not yet have a pre-order option, and is still shown as “coming soon.”
The Cruz Reader is available for pre-order at Fry’s, Neweggand Borders; the Cruz Tablet is available at Borders.
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While I’m not a particular fan of People Magazine, I am a fan of the way in which they are treating their subscribers. Readers who subscribe to the paper edition will now have free access to the digital version on the iPad.
This is something that I think all magazine publishers should offer, or at the very least you should be able to switch from the paper to the digital format if you wish. Apparently this is not only in the hands of the magazine publishers however.
The NYT reports that because Apple is supposed to get a cut of any app sold through iTunes, some rather long negotiations were required before Time Inc., publisher of People, was able to offer the free digital edition on the iPad. Print subscribers will now be able to enter a verification code to receive the People app at no charge. Time reportedly wants to offer the same type of deal for other magazines it publishes.
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At its latest earnings call yesterday, HP announced that it will be releasing both a Windows-based and a Palm WebOS-based tablet. There were rumors a few months ago that HP had killed its Windows 7 tablet.
(via FT Techblog)
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The Scott Pilgrim comic book series by Bryan O’Malley is now available as an iPad and iPhone app. This is actually a reading app for the comics which gives you some free sample content and from which you can purchase the six volumes in the series.
The first five volumes are $6.99 each and the sixth and final volume is $11.99. Volumes you purchase can also be accessed via the comiXology website on your PC or mobile device.
The Scott Pilgrim series became a NYT bestseller and was adapted into a favorably reviewed film starring Michael Cera and directed by Edgar Wright.
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Verizon has announced (via GigaOM) that it will be releasing an app early next year that will allow its FiOS subscribers to watch programming on their iPads. Initially the iPad app will only allow you to watch content within your own home. Verizon is also working on a video-on-demand application that should work across multiple devices.
Meanwhile, HBO has nixed any hopes that it would join the Netflix stable of streaming video partners. Instead it appears that HBO will probably create its own streaming service.
Besides a number of popular series of its own, HBO also owns the exclusive streaming rights to content from Warner Bros., Twentieth Century Fox and Universal. (via eCommerce Times)
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eReader & Tablet News – 8/14/2010 no comments
Lots of things happening this week, I’ll recap here what I could not cover elsewhere.
The latest generation Kindle 3 is now shipping on September 10. The Kindle 3 continues to sell well and the ship date for new orders was pushed back two days. E Ink Holdings has said that it is increasing the production of EPDs to keep up with the demand.
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Kobo is running another contest. The prize in this one is a free ebook every month for one year. As is usual with Kobo’s contests, you are automatically entered when you buy a book. This contest is running from August 11 to August 17, 2010. You can read all of the fine print at Kobo.com.
In other Kobo news, guests at Fairmont Gold will have the use of a Kobo ereader during their stay. The eReader will come preloaded with a variety of Random House ebooks, and guests will also be given a $2 off coupon good for select Random House ebooks from Kobo.
This seems like a good idea, as it will no doubt get ereaders into the hands of some who would otherwise not have a chance to try one. It is easy to impress a traveler with the utility of an ereader – it is far easier to carry a load of books on an ebook reader than in your suitcase. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we see similar promotions at other hotels soon; also involving NOOKs and Kindles if Amazon and B&N get into the act.
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It’s a tablet. No, it’s a smartphone . . . No, it’s the Dell Streak!
Dell started taking orders for its Streak tablet/phone yesterday
, Friday the 13th (pre-sale registrants were able to order on the 12th, a day earlier). The Streak is $299.99 with a 2-year AT&T contract, or $549.99 without.
In addition to its other features, the Streak has a Gorilla glass screen, which is pretty much unbreakable. If we cannot get flexible screens for our ereaders I would certainly settle for this – I would even pay more for the assurance that my ereader’s screen was much more damage-resistant than current models.
Maximum PC has a pretty thorough review of the Dell Streak.
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According to Gartner (via Electronics Weekly), Android is the most popular smartphone OS in the US, and is in third place internationally behind RIM and Symbian.
Meanwhile, Reuters reports that Oracle has filed suit against Google, alleging that the Android OS infringes on its Java related copyrights and patents. Oracle acquired Java when it purchased Sun Microsystems in January of this year.
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Smashwords and and the Diesel eBook Store have signed a distribution agreement. Smashwords will distribute its Premium Catalog of over 11,000 ebooks through the Diesel beginning on August 25, 2010. Smashwords will also power the new Diesel Publishing Portal which caters to indie authors and publishers with fewer than 100 published titles.
Authors and publishers who utilize Smashwords to supply eBooks to the Diesel eBook Store will earn royalties of 60% of the retail price as set by the Smashwords author or publisher.
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eReader and Tablet News – 8/2/2010 no comments
Research in Motion Tablet in the Works?
Bloomberg reports that it has been told by sources that RIM is planning on introducing a tablet this coming November. Reportedly the tablet will be called the BlackPad.
The device is said to have a 9.7-inch display, and will include both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth for connectivity. Users will be able to connect to the Internet via their BlackBerry phones. Pricing is said to be similar to the iPad.
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Random House Expects Ebook Sales to Surge
Reuters reports that Random House CEO Markus Dohle says that Random House ebook sales could account for more than 10 percent of the company’s revenue by next year. Currently in the US ebooks represent about eight percent of revenue. Dohle made the remarks in an interview with the German magazine Der Spiegel.
Dohle also seems skeptical of predictions that ebooks will overtake pbooks within the next five years, "I don’t share this view, that’s too aggressive, too much hype for my taste," he said. "The share will probably be somewhere between 25 and 50 percent by 2015, even in the United States."
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Kindle eBook Gifting on the Way?
Before the official announcement of the Kindle 3, Amazon executives conducted private showings of the new devices with technology reporters and some of the larger blogs. The Amazon reps are well schooled on what not to let slip out and are generally tight-lipped when it comes to releasing information that Amazon is not ready to disclose yet.
Lance Ulanoff writes at PCMag.com that in his private meeting with Amazon VP of Kindle Content Russ Grandinetti he brought up the issue of not being able to gift ebooks, which draws a lot of complaints from ereader users. Ulanoff reports that Grandinetti may have hinted at good things to come:
"Stay tuned, we know gifting is important," he said. "We have a long experience with trying to make people’s holidays really good." And, he added, Amazon is working on making this year’s holidays good.
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eReader & iPad News – 7/26/2010 2 comments
DMCA Rules Updated
The Copyright Office of the Library of Congress has revised the copy-prevention and access control anti-circumvention exemptions of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). It may now be legally ok to:
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Circumvent the Content Scrambling System (CSS) of DVDs for the purposes of incorporating short portions of motion pictures for use in educational settings, criticism and commentary, documentary filmmaking and noncommercial videos.
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Jailbreak your phone.
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Circumvent DRM on ebooks when all existing ebook editions of the title contain access controls that prevent the enabling of text-to-speech or of screen readers that render the text into a specialized format (such as Braille), for the purpose of making these works accessible. I think that this is actually a renewal of a previous exemption.
The DMCA anti-circumvention exemptions are revised every three years.
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Wattpad Partners with Bubok – Spanish Self Publisher
Wattpad has partnered with Bubok, which is the leading self-publishing service for authors writing in Spanish. Wattpad accounts can now be directly linked to print-on-demand services offered by Bubok, enabling readers a way to support their favorite authors.
“Bubok aims to fulfill the dream of publishing for many authors, but also help their work reach the widest possible audience. Giving writers the chance to make their literature available on Wattpad allows authors the opportunity to reach thousands of new users that may be interested in reading and buying their books,” explains Ángel María Herrera, CEO of Bubok.
Wattpad says that around half of its traffic comes from non-English speaking countries. Wattpad currently offers content in over 20 languages, although more of its content is downloaded in English than in any other language.
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6-Inch Global Kindle “Temporarily out of stock”
Apparently at its new, more friendly price of $189 the 6-inch Kindle global ereader
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Simon & Schuster Releases U-Ventures iPhone and iPad App for Children
Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing has 
released Return to the Cave of Time, the first of three U-Ventures based on Edward Packard’s Choose Your Own Adventure books. The second story Through the Black Hole will be released later this summer, and the third U-Ventures story The Forbidden Castle will be out in the fall.
“Readers of the original Choose Your Own Adventure® books had to turn to a particular page to make a choice,” said Edward Packard, a creator and principal author. “In U-Ventures™ apps, they tap the screen. Plot progression is seamless. Our developer, Expanded Apps, added sound, light, and other special effects, even music and alien voices, and I introduced a lot more variations and endings and special situations: for example, where what happens depends on whether the reader remembers a secret word. In the original books, the reader was illustrated as a boy – sometimes a girl. U-Ventures™ are illustrated from the point of view of the reader: What you see is what you’re looking at. It’s neat.”
Available on iTunes for $3.99.
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eReader & iPad News – 7/20/2010 1 comment
Sharp Announces eReader
At a press conference today Sharp announced two new ereaders that should be available later this year. Both are color LCD devices – one with a 5.5-inch screen and a larger model with a 10.8-inch display.
Akihabaranews reports that Sharp plans to introduce its ereaders into the US market and suggests that Sharp will be looking for a carrier to partner with. There are also a few photos there to check out.
Sharp will apparently be using a proprietary ebook format that also has multimedia capabilities. From Sharp’s press release:
Sharp Corporation has developed XMDF, a next-generation e-book format (hereinafter “Next-generation XMDF”) with advanced features that allow users to enjoy video and audio content, in addition to current features such as texts and still images. With next-generation XMDF as a core technology, Sharp will within this year provide digital platform to promote e-book distribution service and launch compatible reader devices to enter the e-book market. Various publishing houses (newspaper, magazines, catalogs), printing and agent companies in Japan and overseas market will be supporting Sharp to launch this e-book business.
Sharp’s next-generation XMDF is an advanced version of the current XMDF format. The current XMDF format has been commercialized in 2001 and is used in e-book contents including Japanese novels and manga comics. The next-generation XMDF enables easy viewing of digital contents including video and audio, and allows automatic adjustment of the layout to match and meet publishers’ needs. With this digital platform, Sharp plans to enhance users’ e-book lifestyle with more sophisticated user interface technology, and at the same time will contribute to expand the e-book market. XMDF allows users to browse the same content on multiple terminals including smart phones, PCs and TVs and also streamlines publisher’s e-book contents production.
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The Times Paywall – the Glass is Still 1/3 Full
The Financial Times is reporting that visits to The Times website have fallen by two-thirds since Rupert Murdoch decided to add a paywall to the site. While this is a large drop, it is better than the 90 percent drop in traffic that some had expected.
Murdoch’s hope is that combining subscription fees with more targeted advertising can generate more revenue.
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enTourage Systems Partners with Cengage Learning
enTourage Systems has steadily been announcing new digital textbook content that is being added for its enTourage eDGe ebook reader. Today enTourage announced an agreement with CengageLearning to add its catalog of etextbooks as well.
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FileMaker Go for iPad and iPhone
FileMaker, Inc announced today that its FileMaker Go apps for iPhone and iPad are now available. The new apps allow users to easily view, edit and search for information in FileMaker databases from their iPhone or iPad.
From the press release:
Ideal for mobile teams, FileMaker Go provides access to databases created with FileMaker Pro and hosted on FileMaker Server or FileMaker Pro. FileMaker Go can access databases residing on a Mac or PC using a local wireless network or over the Internet via Wi-Fi or 3G. All changes are instantly updated in the hosted file. FileMaker Go users can also copy databases between their desktop or laptop computers and FileMaker Go via File Sharing in iTunes, perfect for single user databases. Databases may also be downloaded by email, popular file sharing sites, or the web.
“Imagine being able to check inventory levels, update the status of a project or add a new customer contact and share it with your remote sales team – just a few of the many workgroup tasks made easy with FileMaker Go for iPhone or iPad,” said Ryan Rosenberg, vice president of marketing and services for FileMaker, Inc.
FileMaker Go for iPad is $39.99 and the iPhone version is $19.99.
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eBooks, eReader & iPad News – 7/18/2010 1 comment
A quick look at some of the recent ereader and iPad news that I didn’t get to cover elsewhere.
App Inventor for Android
So you have an idea for a most excellent app for your Android device but don’t know how to program it? Well, now there’s an app for that. Google will soon have a beta version of App Inventor that easily lets you create apps with no programming knowledge by using a visual interface. The visual interface is said to make building an app easy for those who don’t know how to program.
The App Inventor comes with most Android functions available as modular building blocks, ready to plug into your creation. There are blocks for everything from using the GPS-location sensor or the phone features of your Android phone to blocks that perform more programming-like things such as storing information, repeating actions or performing certain actions under certain conditions.
Google will be opening up access to the App Inventor over the coming weeks. To get started you will need to fill out the online form at the link above.
via NYT
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iPad Software Update
Apple has released software update iOS 3.2.1 for the iPad. In addition to various bug fixes and improvements the following are addressed:
- Improved Wi-Fi connectivity
- Fixed an issue that could prevent copy and paste of single-page PDF attachments in Mail
- Addressed an issue that could cause video playback to freeze
- Improved reliability of video-out when using iPad Dock Connector to VGA Adapter
- Added Bing as an option for Safari’s search field
Compatible for both the Wi-Fi and 3G models of the iPad. To download the update connect your iPad to your computer and iTunes should detect and install the new software. You may need to click on your iPad in the left pane to get to the Update button on the Summary tab.
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3G nook at FCC
Barnes & Noble has applied with the FCC for a 3G version of the nook ereader. B&N’s internal project names for the 3G nook are CR Nook 3G and Bravo Delta 3G. There is not a lot of other info – schematics, photos and antenna specs have been withheld at the request of B&N. Too bad – maybe Apple could have learned something to improve the antenna of the new iPhone. 
via Best eReaders
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Neonode Signs zForce License Agreement
Neonode is an interesting touchscreen maker of very responsive IR-based touchscreens. The company announced recently that it had “signed a technology license agreement with one of the leading e-publishing companies in China in partnership with one of the largest ODM companies in Taiwan. The zForce license includes Neonode’s patented touch screen technology supporting high resolution finger navigation with gestures and sweeps.”
The last time I wrote about Neonode was when the company’s zForce touchscreen was to be used in one of the Chinese ereaders. That was just before Amazon bought TouchCo, which was a touchscreen startup.
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eBooks Becoming Big in Japan?
At the moment, most of the ebooks available in the Japanese language seem to be either manga or shorter light romance and porn. That could change soon. The Mainichi Daily News reported recently that NTT Docomo will be entering the ebook market in the early part of next year.
NTT Docomo is Japan’s largest cell phone carrier, and is most interested in marketing ebooks to its mobile phone customers. In Japan dedicated ereaders have never really taken off; most Japanese who read ebooks do so on their phones, which probably explains why a lot of the available ebooks are shorts. The introduction of the iPad to Japan may help change this.
Sony also recently announced that it was partnering with Asahi Shimbun Company (one of Japan’s largest newspaper publishers), Toppan Printing Co (one of Japan’s leading publishers) and KDDI Corp (telecommunications operator) to form an ebook distribution company.
Sony seems to be aiming its ereader business in other directions besides the North American market where it faces very stiff competition from Amazon’s Kindle and the Barnes & Noble nook ereaders.
A few days ago the WSJ JapanRealTime blog wrote that Dai Nippon Printing Co., LTD, which is one of Japan’s larger printing houses, is now also planning to open an ebook store by this autumn. The new store will offer about 100,000 titles from various publishers.
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eReader News – 7/7/2010 no comments
Lots of ereader news today, and not all of it good.
First of all, there are reports that Interead has gone into liquidation. Nothing seems to be confirmed yet. At the COOL-ER online store the ereaders are out of stock for every country I searched in.
Sad news, but I’m not surprised. The main thing Interead’s COOL-ER ereaders had going for them was their jelly bean colors. Before the agency pricing model took over the COOL-ER ebook store was much pricier than the competition as well, although the prices there seem more in line now.
At CES Interead announced new models that were supposed to be out about now with Wi-Fi and 3G.
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Amazon’s new Kindle DX graphite has started shipping and is shown as being in stock on the Amazon site. I ordered one a few days ago, but mine has not shipped yet – can’t wait!
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Hachette Book Group announced that bestselling author James Patterson has sold over one million ebooks – the first novelist to do so.
James Patterson said, “Things have really changed in the digital space. With more and more people reading on iPads, Kindles, and Nooks, taking time to create interesting, user-friendly, enhanced ebook editions is becoming more and more important. And if ebooks get people who might otherwise not be reading to pick up a book, then that makes me happy.”
James Patterson has to date sold more than 205 million copies of his books worldwide.
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eReader and iPad News – 6/16/2010 no comments
Tired of all those National Geographic magazines clogging up your basement? The 120 year old magazine has just embraced the age of digital reading and is available through Zinio, which means that it is also available on the iPad through the free Zinio app. A one year digital subscription to the National Geographic costs $15.
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Amazon has begun pushing out the 2.5 version software update through the wireless connection, but if you have not got your update yet you can manually download and install it on your Kindle 2 (US), Kindle Global or Kindle DX (US or Global) ereader yourself.
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Okay, this one has nothing whatsoever to do with any kind
of reading, e or otherwise. But if one of the reasons you bought an iPad was so that you might someday be able to pilot your own unmanned spy drone – you are in luck! The Parrot AR Drone is finally here (soon) to fulfill your dreams.
The Parrot AR is a quadricopter and can be piloted with the iPad, iPod Touch or an iPhone and costs $300. It comes with two cameras and generates its own Wi-Fi network – not sure what the range is. These things were a crowd pleaser at CES. If you want more details check out the Parrot AR Drone press release. I’m guessing that there is a pretty steep learning curve here. You can pre-order the Parrot AR at Amazon.
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ActiveTrak claims that laptops, smartphones and other portable media devices running its GadgetTrak application enjoy a 95 percent recovery rate when lost or stolen. ActiveTrak has just announced the availability of its remote theft recovery software for the iPad. For more details visit GadgetTrak.com. The pricing is $14.95 per year for a single device, or $29.95 per year for five devices – which seems quite reasonable. This service is also available for the Kindle ereader.
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eReader News – 6/15/2010 no comments
Looking for a place to connect your Wi-Fi ereader or iPad while out on the road? Starting July 1, 2010 Starbucks will offer unlimited free Wi-Fi powered by AT&T that anyone can access with one click without a Starbucks card.
Starbucks has also partnered with Yahoo to create the Starbucks Digital Network which will offer digital content and a few business related tools such as a resume writing application. Free unrestricted access to various paid sites such as WSJ.com will also be available. Some of the content providers listed as participating in the launch of Starbucks Digital Network include iTunes, The New York Times, Patch, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, Yahoo! and Zagat. The Starbucks Digital Network will debut in the fall and will be available only at US company operated Starbucks stores.
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Leading textbook retailer www.ecampus.comhas announced
that they have expanded their textbook rental program to include all major titles for the fall semester. Almost half a million titles are available to rent now.
When renting textbooks, students pay a much lower price for the title and then return it at the end of the semester or school year. This makes eCampus.com a more economical solution than the college bookstore.
Besides renting textbooks, eCampus.com also offers digital etextbooks and buys and sells used textbooks. The promo code JOCK can be use for a five percent discount on textbook rentals at eCampus.com – the coupon expires on July 15,2010.
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Although Amazon and Penguin reportedly have trouble on agreeing on some things such as the prices of ebooks, they have apparently been able to reach agreement as to who the winners are for the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award.
The winner for the general fiction category is Patricia McArdle for her novel “Farishta,” which will be published by Riverhead books.
The winner for the young adult fiction category is Amy Ackley for her novel “Sign Language,” which will be published by Viking Children’s Books.
Both of these titles are available for pre-order at Amazon.
The winners were selected by tapping the wisdom of the crowd:
“Thousands of Amazon.com customers participated in the 2010 Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award by posting reviews and casting votes for the winners,” said Jeff Belle, vice president, U.S. books, Amazon. “The results of this year’s vote were the closest we’ve ever had, which is indicative of both the competitiveness of the entries and the exceptional work from our finalists.”
Both winners will receive a publishing contract from Penguin Group USA, which includes a $15,000 advance.
