Google E-Bookstore Levels The E-Books Playing Field

From Barnes and Noble, Amazon to Apple‘s iBook, we have different platforms to buy and read e-books. Now, we have one more option – Google ebookstore.

Google ebookstore isn’t the typical e-bookstore for a single device. For example, e-books bought through the iBooks app can only be read through the iPad. Instead, Google allows consumers to buy these books and read them on any device as long as it has a web browser.

Plus, Google e-bookstore integrates cloud computing technology which allows users to enjoy the e-books seamlessly across multiple devices.

For example, a user could begin reading an e-book on an iPad at home, continue reading the same book on an Android smartphone while traveling to work and then pick it up again on a web browser at the office. The book will open each time to the place where the user left off.

This video will tell you more about Google Books:

Leveling The Playing Field

Amazon has been the dominant player in the e-book market. Google ebookstore offers a really good chance for independent publishers to play catch up. It seems that books are really destined to go digital and Google Books provides more choice for consumers with its open e-bookstore system. It’s a pretty smart move from Google. Having to read from a web browser ensures Google has control over any potential advertising opportunities in the future.

“This levels the playing field,” said Oren Teicher, the chief executive of the American Booksellers Association. “If you want to buy e-books, you don’t just have to buy them from the big national outlets.”

Google Books is currently only available in U.S. We’re reaching out to Google to learn when it will be launched in Asia. I believe Google Books could help books written in Mandarin and Japanese to attain wider reach. Google Books will be extremely popular in Japan whereby mobile devices play a huge part of the population’s consumption habits. We’ll share as we learn.