Ereader Update: One Year Later (Part 1)

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Almost exactly one year ago, I wrote two columns outlining the bare bones basics of e-books and e-readers. Tackling those subjects in less than 1600 words seems laughably naïve at this point, but people coming into the bookstore were asking us about the pros and cons of buying a Nook from Barnes & Noble or a Kindle from Amazon. The techies already knew what their iPads and Smart Phones could do, but many of us common folk were trying to figure out what all this stuff was on our most recent phone upgrade, or if we should really allow our younger relatives to talk us into accepting that new gadget for Christmas.

In last year’s articles, I gave myself insurance from looking completely stupid (I hope) in saying that this field of electronic books, and the technology we’ll use to read them, is wide-open and rapidly changing. That is as true now as it was a year ago. Not only are the big corporations producing more and better choices for devices on which to read e-books, but those big boys keep changing the rules, keeping the rest of us hopping.

When the book industry began to realize that electronic books and e-readers were to become a permanent addition to the ways that people read, there was a lot of scrambling to match the technology to the content. There are a lot of players – writers, publishing houses, brick-and-mortar bookstores and technology stores, online stores, software developers, and the readers themselves. People need to figure out what they want from a device, and then how they’ll get the content. Just like the early days of Apple versus IBM, one of the biggest questions is whether or not there will be software that will allow the user of one device to purchase e-books from any source, or only through the company which makes a certain device.

Currently, Amazon leads the way in proprietary devices: buying a Kindle product locks you in to getting your ebooks from Amazon exclusively, or borrowing ebooks temporarily from your public library. Apple, on the other hand, has led the way in developing “apps” (software applications) that allow owners of almost any device -- the iPad, iPhone, Androids, Smart Phones, laptops and desktops of all makes and models, as well as several other ereaders -- to buy their ebooks from many companies, including independent bookstores.

The independent bookstore has, up until now, only had a small role in this scene. The focus of an indie bookstore is, obviously, the love of books and the desire to help people continue to cherish and share this love for owning paper and ink. Nevertheless, most of us realize that readers are adding to their repertoire, and that the ereader is just one more way in which to enjoy stories. Although brick-and-mortar stores have had only a small share of this market, they have been dancing with the big boys all along. In December 2010, the American Booksellers Association (the “ABA” – I think of it as a Chamber of Commerce for independent bookstores in the U.S.) announced a partnership with Google which would allow indie bookstores to sell Google ebooks to their customers via the bookstores’ websites. Since the technology was so new, the process was pretty clunky, so that the customer needed to establish a special online account with the indie bookstore, and a separate account with Google, then they would purchase the ebook, often downloading it first to their computer and then uploading it to a device of their choice (except the Kindle), but it did offer a way for customers to continue to support their local bookstore even when buying ebooks.

In April 2012, however, Google went public with their decision that, as of January 31, 2013, they would be discontinuing this program with the independent bookstores. The ABA was already in talks with other major companies to find a way to allow indies to sell ereader devices in their stores, so the additional need of a new source for ebooks added fuel to the fire. On August 29 – not even a month ago! – the Wall Street Journal led with the announcement of a new partnership between the ABA and the e-book and e-reader retailer Kobo, which will officially launch in late October. This partnership between the ABA and Kobo brings another huge company to the table – Ingram Content Group, one of the U.S.’s two largest wholesalers for books. For many bookstores, orders with Ingram make up the bulk of their business when obtaining new inventory for their stores. Now, Ingram will offer bookstores the option of buying Kobo readers as well as Kobo accessories, at wholesale prices, so that they, too, can sell their customers ereader devices as well as ebook content.
Just as last year, I’ll divide the news here, and use a second column, next week, to give the background and stats on Kobo and what lies ahead for this sector of the book market.

Looking for last year’s articles on ereading? Check out Hobo’s blog, either by finding it on his website, www.wellsborobookstore.com, or by going directly there, http://frommyshelf.blogspot.com. Have specific questions of your own for Hobo’s IT department? Email us at from_my_shelf@yahoo.com.