| Barnes and Noble is not content to merely open up a new digital bookstore in new markets, but are obsessed with quality. The largest bookseller in the USA has just announced that they are bringing their Nook Press self-publishing platform to the UK, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium. All of these books will be available in their host countries primary language. The Bookseller is reporting that “Authors will receive royalties in local currency, whether sterling or euros, at rates "competitive" with Amazon and Kobo programs. Authors who choose to price books in the sweet spot between £1.50-£7.99 will receive 65% of the list price for sold content. For books priced below or above (as low as 75p, as high as £120.00), the royalty drops to 40%. Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing authors receive 70% royalty if their books are priced between £1.49 and £7.81 but e-books priced outside this range will only yield 35% royalty rate. Kobo pays a 70% royalty on e-books priced between $1.99 and $12.99, and a 45% royalty on e-books below $1.99 or above $12.99.” There will be a 60 day payment cycle for authors who earn money with the platform. "We understood the priority of getting launched outside the US and recognized the number of wonderful independent voices not being served whom we could offer to the reading customer," Horner said. But the process of getting there was "complicated," requiring a "company-wide" effort. "We had to figure out how to pay in local currency, deal with tax and other financial details, different languages, etc." All told, development took "six to nine months." Barnes and Noble is going to make publishing on their platform as painless as possible. They are offering a free phone number for authors to call if they have trouble navigating the website or submitting a book. Nook e-Readers will not be available for sale in any of these new countries, other than the UK. Instead, users will have to use the Nook app to read books. If you use an iPhone or iPad, you won’t be able to buy self-published titles via, Nook. Instead, you will have to use the Safari web-browser to buy the books and then sync them to the app. Android is a bit easier for the average user because you can buy and read books directly in the app. Nook Press originally launched last year and has been a US based exclusive. This is the first time Nook is opening up their self-publishing system and it will be interesting to see if the company will offer localized titles in their stores that are not self-published. The company has not alluded to this at all, but it makes sense to open up a new market with indie titles and add trade ones later. Nook Press Expands into 7 New Countries is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Monday, March 17, 2014
Nook Press Expands into 7 New Countries
Are e-Readers or Tablets better for Library eBooks?
| Libraries all over North America, Europe, and Australia are heavily invested in eBooks. Overdrive, 3M, Baker and Taylor, Recorded Books and many other companies all help facilitate newspapers, magazines, eBooks, audiobooks and streaming video. If you are thinking of buying a dedicated device to borrow free content from the library, what should you purchase? A few years ago most libraries just loaned out eBooks in PDF, EPUB and Kindle friendly formats. This made a dedicated e-reader like the Kobo, Kindle, Nook or Sony a viable investment. Sadly, most of these companies have all axed built in speakers or a headphone jack. This results in them no longer being able to play audiobooks, which may be a deal breaker for some. If you are thinking of doing business with the local library and don’t want to be limited by the type of content you can checkout, I would recommend a tablet. If money is not an issue, or if you can buy one secondhand, the iPad or iPad Mini is the best investment. Almost all libraries have dedicated apps which you can use to browse, checkout and read eBooks, magazines or newspapers you borrow. It is useful to all do this with a singular app, which makes it a simpler process. The thing I like about an iPad, is that most libraries or companies like Overdrive have their flagship apps on it. Often, these apps have more functionality than their Android counterparts. Not that Android is a bad ecosystem, I just noticed the apps for Apple are a bit more polished. Developers who make iOS apps also update it more frequently, giving you new features sooner. The problem with dedicated e-readers is that they don’t have apps. If you want to borrow books from the library, it is a complicated process. Often you have to browse the libraries website on your PC and then download the book. Often these books all have DRM, which means you have to procure Adobe Digital Editions. You have to register an account and input lots of billing information. You can then transfer the books to your reader via the USB cable. This is basically too complicated, but for the tech savvy or the voracious reader, gives the best overall reading experience. Are e-Readers or Tablets better for Library eBooks? is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Digital Publishing on the Rise in Canada
| Canadian publishing companies are increasingly becoming enamoured with focusing on digital. Close to 90% of publishers currently produce ebooks, and the remainder are either in the process of starting to produce ebooks, or plan to produce them in the future. Digital books is big business with major publishing companies reporting that 10% of their entire revenue stream derives from eBooks. Boutique and smaller publishers have stated that their sales fluctuate, with 1-10% of their sales, on average, stemming from eBooks. When it comes to customers buying eBooks, 93% of all publishers have said that they do business with Kobo. While, 83% of publishers also elect to do business with Amazon to have their content available on Kindles. Apple placed a strong third, with 76% of publishers choosing to sell ebooks in What are the barriers for digital adoption in Canada right now? The majority of traditional publishers (53%) do not have a staff member specifically dedicated to digital. While 100% of large publishers and 71% of mid-size publishers have a dedicated digital staff member, only 31% of small publishers do. Another barrier is lack of new titles being digitized. Almost half (49%) of all respondents have more than 50% of their active print titles available as ebooks, and 19% reported that 100% of their active list is available in a digital format. In order for the publishing industry in Canada to thrive small and medium companies need to devote more resources to their digital infrastructure. Having at least one staff member to facilitate the digital conversion is essential and making sure your entire catalog is available will boost sales. Most major publishers now have between 22% and 30% of their entire revenue stream derived from the sales of electronic books. This is putting smaller companies under the gun to better compete. You can read the full report from BookNet Canada. Digital Publishing on the Rise in Canada is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Podcast: Nook Press, Bestsellers by Indie Authors, Pew and Booknet Reports
| Welcome back to another utterly compelling edition of the Good e-Reader Radio Show! Today editor-in-chief Michael Kozlowski talks to Digital Book World’s Jeremy Greenfield. They talk about Nook Press expanding to the UK, Microsoft putting the kibosh on Nook Windows 8 Development, indie authors making the bestseller list in record numbers, the new Divergent movie and tons more! Podcast: Nook Press, Bestsellers by Indie Authors, Pew and Booknet Reports is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Nook Press Self-Publishing Platform Launches in UK
| Barnes and Noble has unveiled their Nook Press platform in the UK and will start accepting submissions very soon. The Nation’s largest bookseller will be attending the Oxford Literary Festival where it will be putting together many publishing events to introduce writers and publishers to Nook Press. Nook Press launched in 2013 as a direct followup to Barnes and Noble’s original self-publishing platform, Pubit! Teresa Horner is spearheading the Nook Press initiative and under her watch is formally expanding into new markets, instead of solely being based in the US. US authors have been able to sell their self-published books in the US and UK for quite sometime. Due to logistics, the company has never accepted submissions from writers living in the UK to sell books in both countries. Barnes and Noble plans on expanding Nook Press to France, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium later this year. Often, the UK is a launching point to the rest of Europe. Nook Press Self-Publishing Platform Launches in UK is a post from: Good e-Reader |
OverDrive adds Pearson eText titles
| OverDrive is thrilled to announce that we will now offer more than 100 eText titles from Pearson to our worldwide network of K-12 schools, colleges and public libraries through a distribution agreement. The agreement will allow for many of the most widely used educational materials to be accessed 24/7 through our leading digital library lending platform. "Providing students, parents and community members digital access to our instructional materials in schools, colleges and public libraries around the world is one more way that Pearson is ensuring that all learners can achieve the results they need to be ready for college or careers," said Larry Singer, Managing Director of Pearson's School group. The agreement provides access to eText titles from Pearson, including the latest editions of Prentice Hall United States History, Prentice Hall Economics, enVisionMATH Common Core, myWorld Social Studies K-5, Writing Coach, Interactive Science K-8, AP* French and many others. "Enabling student access to digital textbooks continues to be a priority for OverDrive," said Don Fabricant, Chief Sales Officer and General Manager for Education at OverDrive. "Pearson is a leading provider of educational titles, and this partnership represents a significant advancement in eBook materials for educators and students." The world's leading learning company, Pearson, serves learners of all ages around the globe. This partnership brings OverDrive's eBook and audiobook catalog for K-12 to approximately 550,000 available titles in 52 languages covering virtually all subjects and grade levels. Pearson joins recently-added Macmillan and many other publishers of educational titles in OverDrive's largest digital catalog available for schools. Talk to your Collection Development Specialist today for more information!  |
Picademy – Free CPD for Teachers
| I am very pleased to announce the first ever Raspberry Pi Academy for Educators! The Raspberry Picademy will be a free professional development experience for primary and secondary teachers, initially for those here in the UK. Over the course of two days, (14th – 15th April 2014), 24 applicants will get hands-on experience here at Pi Towers, and discover the many ways in which the Raspberry Pi can be used in the classroom, working with our team of experts.  Raspberry Pi robotics at Kimbolton School We will be looking to select 24 teachers for this program who meet our criteria and demonstrate a passion for education and for sharing practice, whatever their level of computing experience. In particular we are looking for teachers who:
 We want to build a wider community of pioneering educators through this program, and it would make us all really happy if after the two day event, they go on to:
As well as training, educators will have access to a forum to share ideas, get some Raspberry Pi goodies and a special badge. If you think you might be one of our superteachers, then you can apply by filling out this application form. Please note that although this training is provided free of charge and we will provide your meals, you will have to make your own transport and accommodation plans (we’ll be making information about where you can stay and how to get here available to the people who take part). The deadline for applications is Friday 28th March. |
UK Organization Quick Reads Meets a Need for Emerging Readers
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Whether the books are abridged versions of classics with oversimplified explanations and ridiculous line drawings, or worse, barely-adapted children’s books, the quality of these reads might speak to the ability level of the adult student, but does nothing for fostering an interest in becoming a reader. Why would publishers assume that lack of reading ability is actually a correlated measure of intelligence or interest? Struggling readers want to read exciting new books of the same caliber as the authors that mainstream reading society holds in high regard. An organization based in the UK is now doing amazing work in that regard. Quick Reads commissions well-known and bestselling authors to write shorter books specifically for their program, and releases them for devices. According to an article for The Observer by Anna Baddeley, “Last month the charity published the results of a survey into how technology is shaping our reading habits: nearly half (48%) of UK adults who use technology to read said it had made them read more; 41% said that being able to look up words they didn’t know has made reading easier while half said that being able to adjust the appearance of the text has helped; 62% said that being able to access free ebooks has meant they have read books they would not otherwise have read.” Technology has already been lauded for the help it can provide to autistic students, dyslexic readers, and more. Now, with the opportunity to cut some of the costs associated with publication and make Quick Reads titles available to adult learners to read on the go or as time allows, the tech side of reading just became a whole lot more important. UK Organization Quick Reads Meets a Need for Emerging Readers is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Tip o’ the hat to Irish authors
| Today is a great day to be Irish. In honor of St. Patrick's Day, we made a list of some of our favorite Irish authors. James Joyce, Frank Delaney, Maeve Binchy, Colum McCann, and Declan Burke are just a few of the names you will see when you click on the link below. These wonderful stories will transport you into the world of Irish culture and history which can bring new meaning to the celebrations and festivities happening today. Between pints of Guinness and corned beef sandwiches, share these with your loved ones and patrons in tribute of the great Irish writers of our time and before. Do you have any other favorites that we left off the list? How about any fun plans or library programming you are doing in honor of St. Patrick's Day? Sláinte! *Some titles may have limited regional or platform availability.
Rachel Somerville is a Collection Development Analyst at OverDrive.
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Leaked iOS 8 Screenshots Reveals New Healthbook App
| Apple is tipped to launch iOS 8 at the Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) scheduled this June though there already is a sneak peek of what's in store with the next upgrade thanks to a leak from Chinese site Weibo. As revealed in the leaked screenshots, there is going to be at least two new OSX apps – Preview and TextEdit – that will make its debut in the mobile OS. Both of these apps though will offer limited functionality as these are purported to allow users to view files created by the desktop app and stored in iCloud. These are unlikely to offer any editing capabilities. Another app that has appeared in the leaked screen shot of what is believed to be that of the next iOS iteration is Healthbook. This app is already being touted to emerge as the biggest USP of iOS 8 in the coming days and will give shape to the renewed focus that Apple is expected to assign to health and fitness aspects. Not to mention, the Healthbook app will also provide easy integration with the iWatch with built-in health tracking features that the Californian company is expected to come up with in the coming days. Popular site dealing with Apple devices, 9to5Mac has confirmed the legitimacy of the leaked screenshots with help from Apple sources.
Leaked iOS 8 Screenshots Reveals New Healthbook App is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Libri, Bookline.hu Merger in Hungary Strengthens Bookselling Industry
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Online bookseller Bookline.hu and Libri have teamed up to give consumers convenience and choice, while still working to not serve as competition for each other given their vastly different functions. Bookline claims to have a user base of better than one in ten of the country’s population, with just over one-and-a-half million users in a country with slightly less than ten million residents. As for Libri, it operates fourteen physical stores in the capital city alone, with more than a dozen other stores scattered around the country. The biggest thing going for the merger will be the ability to leverage their marketing and promotion dollars, which only makes sense since they sell virtually the same product. Bookline has been experiencing some painful financial losses lately, and hopes the merger will boost brand recognition and profits.
Libri, Bookline.hu Merger in Hungary Strengthens Bookselling Industry is a post from: Good e-Reader |
FireFox For Windows 8 Project Axed Due to Low Demand
| Mozilla has announced they have put an end to the Firefox for Windows 8 project just weeks of launching the beta version because there just aren't enough testers who volunteered to test the new touch-friendly Metro avatar of Firefox. Mozilla also stated they are not going to risk launching what could be a buggy version of the browser. This applies to only the touch screen version of the popular browser, though the traditional desktop version continues to be available. “In the months since, as the team built and tested and refined the product, we've been watching Metro's adoption,” revealed Firefox VP Johnathan Nightingale in a blog post. “From what we can see, it's pretty flat. On any given day we have, for instance, millions of people testing pre-release versions of Firefox desktop, but we've never seen more than 1000 active daily users in the Metro environment.” The touch-friendly version of Firefox was scheduled to be launched on March 18, but that obviously isn't relevant any more. Mozilla stated they aren't ruling out the browser in future and will be back in development once demand picks up.
FireFox For Windows 8 Project Axed Due to Low Demand is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Amazon Issues New Update For its Kindle App For Android
| Amazon has come up with an update to its Kindle app for Android. The update doesn’t introduce any new fancy features but brings about some interesting enhancements to the existing set up. The changes include the introduction of several new fonts to choose from, along with easy access to the table of contents when reading a particular book. The update also promises faster cover loading along with automatic brightness control. The issue of using the volume buttons for page turning has also been overhauled so that it now allows for better and more refined control. Overall, it’s a minor update, but it no doubt will allow for a better reading experience using the Kindle app.
Amazon Issues New Update For its Kindle App For Android is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Saturday, March 15, 2014
Goodereader Android and Blackberry App Store gets Better Search
| The Good e-Reader Android and Blackberry App Store has been going strong for over two years now and searching has always been a big issue. In the past, we relied on Google Search that would not normally index new apps right away. Sometimes, it would take weeks before an app we just uploaded would appear in the search results. Obviously this created a huge bottleneck with app discovery and being able to find new content quickly. Today, we are happy to report we solved this problem. The new Good e-Reader App Store Search program was custom written for our website to handle the extensive app library. The end result allows you to search for new apps, the second a developer uploads it to the site, or our staff of curators contribute content. Getting search to function correctly was a huge undertaking. The download suite we use has been 100% custom written for the store, and there are no existing libraries or code that would work. We basically had to start from scratch and build a new system that would use Elasticsearch and talk directly to our database. Right now, the end result for search is not sexy, but it is functional. In the coming months we will implement a brand new site design, so stay tuned. Goodereader Android and Blackberry App Store gets Better Search is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Self-Published eBooks Dominate Bestseller Lists
| Self-Publishing is getting to be big business and on a monthly basis these indie titles are dominating bestseller lists. The New York Times, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble are the main ones people pay the most attention to. Today, we look at some interesting statistics on how self-published titles are starting to dominate the bestseller lists. Penguin and Random House had 478 eBook bestsellers in 2013, while Hachette had 258. The vast majority of other titles that dominated the charts were written by independent authors. In 2013, self-published books accounted for 27% of the 100 top selling e-books on Amazon each week, on average. Barnes and Noble has said that “30% of NOOK customers purchase self-published content each month, representing 25% of NOOK Book sales every month.” Many indie authors made the New York Times bestseller list in 2013, such as Bella Andre, Rachel Van Dyken, Abbi Glines, Katy Evan, Barbara Freethy. Mark Coker of Smashwords has stated that by 2020, 50% of all eBooks will be self-published. Does this mean that the traditional bestseller list will have more indie works on it? Will we reach a time when the New York Times doesn’t even have a traditionally published book on it? Self-Published eBooks Dominate Bestseller Lists is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Joyland by Stephen King Finally Goes Digital
| Joyland was a novel by Stephen King and was released back in June of 2013. The author buckled the trend of a simultaneous release in trade and digital formats. Instead, he only published it only in hardcover, citing "I have no plans for a digital version. Maybe at some point, but in the meantime, let people stir their sticks and go to an actual bookstore rather than a digital one." Well, it looks like a full year later Joyland will finally be available as an eBook. Stephen King is no stranger to digital and released a novel in 2000 called Riding The Bullet, that was only available as an ebook. This was during a time when no one really knew what a digital book was, other than the extremely tech savvy. Last year, King released a Kindle Single exclusive that was basically an essay. The industry was taken aback from Stephen decided to only do a physical book and not do a digital release. Many major news organizations, such as the New York Times, Washington Journal and others picked up on the story. Really, the buzz surrounding the entire situation got more people talking about the book, so mission accomplished, in terms of overall awareness. Joyland, the coming-of-age story of a college student who works at a funfair where a murder has been committed will be available on Amazon, B&N, and Kobo April 4th 2014. The pre-orders are available right now, so you can insure an automatic download the day it comes out. Joyland by Stephen King Finally Goes Digital is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Sony Sends First Email to Customers about Kobo
| The Sony Reader Store will be closing operations March 20th in the USA and Canada. Kobo will be taking over the existing customer base and support the exporting of purchased books from Sony to the Kobo platform. Last week, Sony sent out an email to anyone who has purchased an eBook from them to prepare them for the coming move. “Dear Reader Store customer: As a follow-up to our announcement on February 6, 2014, we wanted to remind you that Reader Store will be closing March 20, 2014 at 6 p.m. (EST). Although we are sorry to say goodbye, we are confident that the transition to Kobo will allow you to continue to enjoy a high quality e-reading experience. So, what’s next? As a reminder, in late March, you will receive a notification from us with a link that will allow you to transfer your library to Kobo. Whether you are new to Kobo or already have an account, you’ll be able to transfer your Reader Store eBooks to your Kobo account so you’ll continue to have access to them in the future. Plus, any existing Reader Store credits you might still have in your account will transfer to your Kobo account to use at the Kobo Store. And of course, you can continue to use your Sony Reader to read eBooks from Kobo. We are fully committed to helping you through this exciting transition to Kobo. With the Kobo Store, you’ll have access to more than 4 million of the world’s best eBooks, magazines, comics and kids’ titles, all at your fingertips. We want to thank you for being such loyal customers, a part of our reading family, and for your continued support as we work to complete this transition. It has been a pleasure reading with you! Sincerely, The Reader Store Team Sony Sends First Email to Customers about Kobo is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Asus Transformer Book Duet Axed Due to Pressure from Microsoft and Google
| The Transformer Book Duet was designed to offer the best of both worlds, Android and Windows. The device was first shown off at CES in Las Vegas and became one of the new computers that people started to obsess about. Apparently, Google and Microsoft were not consenting bedfellows and made Asus cancel the device. The Book Duet Transformer hybrid laptop and tablet concept basically allowed users to switch between both Android and Windows with just the press of either a tab on the display or a special button on the keypad unit. The best thing with the entire set up was that there wasn't the need for restarting the device each time one needed to switch OS. However, with mounting pressure from both Google and Microsoft, Asus has caved to the pressure. Microsoft said that they have stopped supporting dual OS devices with a new policy. Google basically said that they don’t want to give Microsoft a foothold into an industry where they haven’t had much success and want to stop the Redmond company from piggybacking.
Asus Transformer Book Duet Axed Due to Pressure from Microsoft and Google is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Microsoft Establishing an Internal Date on Office for iOS
| Microsoft is believed to be in a position of unleashing its popular productivity suite, the MS Office across iOS platform any day now. Experts predicts it's no longer a matter of if, but when. Microsoft stands the risk of losing market share of its Office software suite. The scenario in some ways is akin to BlackBerry holding on to making its BBM to rival platforms for fear of denying its own smartphone range one of its biggest attractions. Microsoft has been resistant to bringing a full version of their seminal Office system to touchscreen systems. The have basically alienated an entire new generation of users that have grown up with iPads and Android tablets. Instead, most users gravitate towards less developed word processors. These are either available free or charge a small amount and are less refined and elegant. Overall, Microsoft has found itself at the crossroads of an important change in the computing industry that it helped shape years ago. However, its time they reinvent themselves and appeal to a wider demographic. It is only a matter of time before the new Microsoft CEO pulls the trigger and establishes a definitive release date.
Microsoft Establishing an Internal Date on Office for iOS is a post from: Good e-Reader |
Banned Erotica eBooks Given a New Home with EXCITICA
| Sometimes Erotica books can be too racy for the sensibilities of major digital bookstores. Amazon, Apple, B&N, Kobo and Smashwords all have their different rules for what is acceptable erotica and what is not. Last October a firestorm erupted with hardcore titles being listed in the kids section, due to the gaming of keywords attached to the book. This resulted in over one thousand titles being removed from the various ecosystems and some publishers accounts suspended. A new bookstore is being launched to give all of these removed titled a new home. EXCITICA is a new website by beselling author Selena Kitt. Its key focus is to capitalize on the success of erotica eBooks. The site is currently in beta and gives self-published authors a 60% revenue share program. Their target market is basically banned eBooks and subject matter that is not appropriate for the general public. In order to not break any laws, EXCITICA has imeplmented a number of rules for indie authors. They make it a point to insure that no books have minors in them and to limit your interspecies relationships to Shapeshifters, Vampires, Zombies or various other paranormal subsets. The new site will have their work cut out for them, as they are in the company of some established players. Red Sage has been around since 2001 and Ellora’s Cave launched a year later. They have the largest following of hardcore readers, other than Amazon, Apple, Kobo and others. Banned Erotica eBooks Given a New Home with EXCITICA is a post from: Good e-Reader |