Following up on the promise to launch its new eBook store before the end of the year 2010, Google eBooks did exactly that today.
Is it possible the launch was timed to compete with the unveiling of Facebook’s “new look,” (as revealed last night on television’s 60 Minutes program) which also debuted today? Maybe, maybe not. Whatever the case may be, the long-anticipated Google eBook Store is now live and here just in time for the Christmas download season.
Many may be surprised to discover just how inclusive the online store is. In addition to lesser established and self-published authors still working their way towards a major breakthrough in the publishing industry, the store also includes major New York Times bestselling authors. In fact, the following are featured already as its top ten bestselling titles:
1) "Cross Fire" by James Patterson
2) "The Confession" by John Grisham
3) "Decision Points" by George W. Bush
4) "Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption" by Laura Hillenbrand
5) "Autobiography of Mark Twain: The Complete and Authoritative Edition" by Mark Twain
6) "Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know" by Alexandra Horowitz
7) "The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest" by Stieg Larsson
8) "Freedom" by Jonathan Franzen
9) "Moonlight Mile" by Dennis Lehane
10) "Super Freakonomics" by Steven D. Levitt
With the proven market value of such eReaders as Amazon’s Kindle, Android Phones, the iPad, and other devices, there’s little doubt that Google eBooks is poised to become a major player in that market. What remains and what only time can provide is an evaluation of its impact throughout the coming year. Looking toward the future of the program, the Google Books Team stated this in a letter to affiliates:
“We're looking forward to establishing a digital book ecosystem that will continue to grow and innovate.”
by Aberjhani, National African American Art Examiner
co-author of ELEMENTAL The Power of Illuminated Love
and Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance
More on Google and eBooks
Comments
I'm not sure what happened to make the links go away in this story but I'm working to correct the issue. Thanks for reading.
Aberjhani
Really good article about the new ebook store. It should be interesting to see how their library expands with new authors and their inclusive books. Their store looks to be very open for many ebook readers on the market, aside from the Kindle.
Thank you Kenneth, glad you enjoyed it. It is a very open and inclusive store, so much so in fact that it's bound to have a tremendous impact on pretty much every level of the publishing and book selling industry. That could provide some major challenges for established industry outlets but also some major opportunities for new and emerging authors.
Aberjhani
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