The areas where FastPencil exceeds are online editing, collaboration and distribution. Fast Pencil offers a surprisingly comprehensive online editing suite. While this editor isn't quite as fully-featured as Microsoft Word, OpenOffice or Apple's Pages - there is no feature to create headlines or tables of content, for example - it's more than enough to power the service's online collaboration tools.

In it's latest update, which launched earlier this week, FastPencil introduced a number of interesting new features. These include new templates, new roles for collaborators (co-authors, project managers) and forums for prospective authors to meet and discuss their work.

Turn Your Blog Into a Book

If you import your blog feed, FastPencil will turn every blog post into a chapter. The service also imports images from these posts. These images have to be inserted at the beginning or end of a post, however. You can't have your text flow around an image.

Publishing: Hardcover, Paperback, E-Book

Once you have finished your book, you can publish it as an e-book and printed book. These services, however, do cost. These paid services include printing, obtaining ISBN numbers, and organizing the distribution of your book on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Ingram Digital and other retail partners. FastPencil also offers a number of editing services like design, illustration and editing services. Besides printing hardcover and paperback books, FastPencil can format books for virtually any digital platform, including DRM-free ePub e-books and the Kindle.

Don't Need All These Services? Try SmashWords

If you don't need all of these services from Fast Pencil - or if you have already finished your book - another service worth looking at is SmashWords. Smashwords specializes in e-books. Thanks to deals with Barnes & Noble and Sony in the US and Indigo Books & Music's Shortcovers in Canada, self-published authors can get their e-books into traditional distribution channels, or sell their books directly on SmashWords. Smashwords acquired the New Zealand-based e-book self-publishing service BookHabit earlier this week.

The application itself is pretty sparse, with just a few buttons for sorting books and switching between downloaded and archived books. Amazon did not integrate the Kindle store into the application, though a prominent link in the app opens up the Kindle store in the browser. This comes as a surprise, given how easy it would be to integrate the store. While reading books, users can adjust the size of the font and bookmark a page. The app can display notes and highlights that were created on a Kindle or in the Kindle for iPhone app.

In designing the app, Amazon clearly had touchscreen and netbook users in mind. All the buttons in the app are large and the left and right edges of the application can be clicked - or tapped - to move between pages. To advance a page, users can also use their cursor keys or mouse wheel.

Users of the Windows application can not add notes or highlights to a book right now, though the company plans to add the ability to create notes and highlights in the application in the future. Amazon is also considering to add a search feature, as well as the ability zoom and rotate images. Another feature that is currently missing but that netbook users would likely appreciate is a full-screen mode.

Kindle Everywhere

Overall, the app is easy to use and works as advertised. The lack of a built-in store and the ability to add notes and highlights is a slight disappointment, though. Sony, Barnes & Noble and others offer desktop e-readers for OSX and Windows with more features. Amazon decided to keep the application as simple as possible.

For Amazon, this is an important move, as it gives the company access to a wider market. While Amazon has sold millions of Kindles, the PC market is still far bigger and the popularity of netbooks could also give the app a boost. Reading a book on a PC or laptop is not as comfortable as on a hardware e-reader with an e-ink display, but the free desktop application will allow users to sample e-books and get accustomed to the process before buying an e-reader.

The desktop application will also give Amazon a presence on all the big platforms - so while other devices may be more open than the Kindle, this argument against the Kindle becomes less potent as Kindle users can now read their books virtually everywhere anyway.

More Than Just Static Text

Over time, e-books on the iPhone will hopefully become more interesting than the current crop of apps. While today's hardware e-readers mimic traditional books, the next generation of e-readers will likely go beyond this and the iPhone is already in a position to lead the charge. Creative's forthcoming Zii MediaBook will offer some of this functionality. With iTunes LP, Apple also has a format that publishers could use to create richer e-book experiences. iTunes LPs aren't compatible with the iPhone and iPod touch, yet. It is likely only a matter of time before Apple brings this format to its mobile devices, though.

In September, after the successful launch of the B&N e-book store, we couldn't help but wonder if B&N's e-book brand was hurt by the fact that it didn't offer any compatible readers yet. Now it looks like B&N is going in the opposite direction: the company will offer so many compatible readers that consumers might actually be confused by this large selection. Amazon, which offers two very similar readers under the Kindle brand, doesn't have this problem.

In a perfect world, every e-reader would be able to read every e-book from every store. You could buy a book in the Amazon Kindle store and read it on your B&N nook. Real books don't have any restrictions, after all. Many new users will assume that e-book readers work just like regular books or like MP3 players and music stores, which have now mostly given up on DRM. With the new influx of devices, B&N and its partners will have to make sure that they educate new users about compatibility issues between different devices and stores.

Why B&N Needs Its Partners

It will be interesting to see how these other devices sell next to B&N's own nook. The nook is closely linked to the B&N brand, while Plastic Logic and iRex aren't household name for most consumers. This is why B&N had to launch its own e-reader and partner with other companies. In order to beat Amazon, B&N couldn't just copy Amazon's device strategy with the nook. The company also had to go beyond this and offer partnerships to other device manufacturers to hedge its bets and to open up its store to a larger audience.

Users will be able to lend out books for up to 14 days at a time.This is definitely an area where the Nook can outshine the Kindle. Users can just select a book and then send it to their friends' Nook, iPhone or iPod touch.

Just like the Kindle, the Nook will also allow users to synchronize books across devices, so that the Nook knows where a users last stopped reading a book on the iPhone, for example.

Judging from the images on the leaked Nook site, it also looks like the device will come in different colors.

As far as eBook standard go, the Nook will support EPUB and PDF documents. In addition, the device can also play MP3 files.

Wireless Connection

Just like Amazon's Kindle and Sony's Reader Daily Edition, the Nook will also be able to download books wirelessly. To facilitate this, B&N has made a deal with AT&T. Interestingly, Amazon's Kindle International Edition also runs on AT&T's network, though B&N's focus is squarely on the US and we don't expect the company to offer its eBooks and the Nook outside of the US anytime soon.

B&N's eBook Strategy

B&N is adopting an interesting strategy for its eBook store. Unlike Amazon, which only supports the Kindle, B&N supports a multitude of devices, including the iRex DR800SG, the forthcoming Plastic Logic QUE, and various mobile, including the BlackBerry, iPhone and Motorola Cliq. Thanks to a partnership with Google, B&N also gives its users access to over 500,000 public domain books - another feature that is currently not available on the Kindle.

Thanks to the number of features like lending, bookmarking and syncing that the Nook can offer thanks to its tight integration with the B&N store, however, it remains to be seen if users will actually be interested in these third-party devices or if the Nook will simply become the de facto eReader for B&N customers.

Clearly, though, the Nook will put a lot of pressure on Amazon this holiday season. While Amazon could bank on the name recognition of its own brand and the Kindle so far, B&N will surely get a lot of publicity out of this launch and the Nook actually looks like a more interesting device than the current generation of Kindles.

Details from the Press Release

Update: Here are all the details about the Nook from the leaked press release, courtesy of our friends at Engadget:

Product Highlights:

• Try, Then Buy - Once you sample for free, buying ebooks is easy. An entire book downloads wirelessly in seconds. Many bestsellers and new releases are just $9.99.
• No reading glasses required! Choose from 5 different font sizes so you can read with ease. The best-in-class E Ink ® display with a 16-bit gray scale offers great contrast with no glare or backlight making for hours of reading enjoyment.
• Just add an expandable Micro SD card , purchased separately, to add to your nook's 2 GB of internal storage space. Besides your ebooks, magazines and newspapers, add pictures, music, and personal documents. PDFs load directly and look great.
• Sample eBooks for free just about anywhere you are, on us. Browse eBooks, magazines and newspapers on AT&T's 3G Wireless Network or on Wi-Fi. And every Barnes & Noble has free Wi-Fi, so you can connect at lightning fast speeds.
• With 2GB of memory, nook stores up to 1,500 books, newspapers and magazines. Need even more space? Just add a memory card for storage of up to 17,500. An entire library light enough to take with you everywhere, so you'll never be without your favorites.
• Never lose your place. Use the virtual bookmark to bring you back to the last book you've read, right where you left off. If you forget your nook at home and are stuck on a bus, keep on reading with your iPhone™, or BlackBerry®, using our free eReader software.
• You can share nook to nook, but it doesn't stop there. Using the new Barnes & Noble LendMe™ technology... you will be able to lend to and from any iPhone™, iPod touch®, BlackBerry®, PC, or Mac®, with the free Barnes and Noble eReader software downloaded on it.
• Control your nook with an easy-to-use full-color touchscreen, created to work seamlessly with the crisp, clean E Ink ® display. Just use your finger to swipe through titles and tap open your next read.
• Visit the store, turn on your nook, and see what pops up on your screen. It's as simple as that. You will get exclusive content, special discounts and more. And soon, you will be able to read entire eBooks for free at your local Barnes & Noble.

Designed for a Better Reading Experience

• nook feels great in hand and features a contoured, easy-to-hold back. About the size and weight of a paperback book, nook is thin, small and portable. Its best-in-class E Ink® Vizplex™ display is easy on the eyes with text as clear and crisp as a printed book. And with no glare or backlight and adjustable text size, you can read comfortably for hours. Our minimalist design puts the focus on the content, not the technology, welcoming the reader to dive right in.

Color Touch Screen for Easy Navigation

• The first-ever color touch screen for navigation on an eBook reader offers an immersive experience, inviting you to virtually browse through brilliant cover art, flip through an expansive library, or search using a virtual keyboard. The combination of color and touch on the beautiful lower screen make navigating nook intuitive and simple, even for the tech novice. nook presents the controls, navigation and keyboard you need, only when you need them.

Download eBooks Wirelessly

• With fast 3G wireless and Wi-Fi access, nook is the most-connected eBook reader. Browse and instantly download eBooks, magazines and newspapers simply and seamlessly on AT&T's 3G wireless network, the nation's fastest, with no set-up required or additional wireless costs. Connect to the complimentary Wi-Fi, provided by the AT&T Wi-Fi network, in Barnes & Noble stores and download at broadband fast speeds.

Lend eBooks to Friends

• With nook's breakthrough LendMe™ technology, lend a wide selection of eBooks to friends free of charge, for up to 14 days at a time. Just choose the book you want to share and send it to your friend's nook or iPhone, iPod touch, select BlackBerry® and Motorola smartphones, PC or Mac® with Barnes & Noble eReader software.

A Continuous Reading Experience

• With ―Reading Now,‖ your virtual bookmark, nook brings you back to the last book you've read, right where you left off. And it works across a range of devices. If you forgot your nook at home, Barnes & Noble's free eReader software on your iPhone, select BlackBerry and Motorola smartphones or laptop lets you pick up where you left off, including annotations. And when you're reunited with your nook again, the Reading Now page will be updated and ready to go.

Over one million stories. Any time, anywhere.

• Browse and buy from our extensive collection of over one million eBooks, including thousands of free titles, virtually anywhere you are. Get your favorite eBooks, newspapers and magazines, plus exclusive reads from Barnes & Noble, delivered via fast and free wireless, with no PC required.

Portability and Personalization

• You can also easily transfer PDF-format documents from your computer to access and read business documents, legal contracts and travel information on your nook. And transfer your photos to create custom screensavers.

Save Time, Money and Space

• Carry up to 1,500 eBooks using nook's 2GB of memory, and a virtually unlimited library using nook's expandable memory slot, which will hold up to 17,500 eBooks on each 16GB MicroSD card. Buying eBooks is simple and seamless. With just two touches, you'll be able to purchase and download eBooks in seconds. And many bestsellers and new releases are just $9.99, so you can enjoy more for less.

Listen to nook

• Using a standard pair of stereo headphones, plug into nook and listen to your favorite songs (MP3s), uploaded through your computer. Use the headphones or built-in speakers to enjoy listening to audiobooks, podcasts, lectures and more.

Protect Your nook in Style

• nook comes with a removable back cover which you can personalize from a selection of four additional great colors. You can also chose from a range of accessories by renowned designers and brands as kate spade new york, Jack Spade, Jonathan Adler, Tahari and others.

Experience nook at Your Local Barnes & Noble

• Customers will be able to browse complete eBooks for free on nook at any Barnes & Noble store, whether or not the actual book is in stock, beginning later this year. Plus settle into the café and get exclusive in-store-only content, free eBooks, special offers and much more using Barnes & Noble's complimentary WiFi, provided by the AT&T Wi-Fi network.

Images used courtesy of our friends at the WSJ Digits blog who deserve credit for discovering this leak.

The project's lofty goal is to essentially create an open web of books where anyone can publish their books and make their content available via search.

Although still in the early days of development and potentially taking years to complete, the BookServer project will allow search engines to index books from all over the web. What that means for an end user is that you could type a title into a search engine and the engine would return results listing everywhere you could get that book in digital format including online bookstores, libraries, or a direct method from the publisher itself. Depending on your needs, you could borrow the book or purchase it and then download it to your digital device.

While the project isn't exactly a direct effort to take down Amazon's online bookstore or Google's upcoming online eBook store called Google Editions, it will provider book publishers and online libraries with the means to more effectively compete with those companies. By allowing publishers to set their own pricing and manage the distribution of their books, they will be able to take back control from Amazon and Google who would rather dictate those terms for them.

An Open Marketplace for eBooks

A secondary goal of BookServer's open system is to fight back against the proprietary marketplaces, such as Amazon's Kindle Store, where books are only sold in a copyright-protected format (.AZW) that only works on the company's eReader device, the Kindle. Elsewhere, some book sellers use other proprietary formats, others use the open ePub format, and still others distribute books as Adobe PDFs. For consumers, this multitude of choices only leads to confusion. People don't know what formats their particular device can read or where to get them. It brings to mind the similar issues consumers have had with digitally distributed music. To this day, many are still confused about whether their iTunes purchased music can play on other devices or whether tunes purchased from other online MP3 stores will play on their iPods.

While Google promises its Google Editions store will allow anyone to access digital books as long as they have a web browser and internet access, it's still unknown at this time how the company plans to make the digital content available offline. Will it require the use of special web browser plugins to do so? Until Google reveals more about the technical details, it is not possible to know how truly open their online store will be. And even if their store is 100% open, they are still a company whose ultimate goal is to profit from their work of digitizing books. BookServer's goal, on the other hand, is to provide universal access to book data made available in open formats.

Today, a few booksellers have partnered with the BookServer system including Feedbooks, O'Reilly, Adobe, and the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) project.

The dual-screen concept is definitely interesting and somewhat reminiscent of the rumored Barnes & Noble-branded eReader that is scheduled to be announced tomorrow. For now, Spring Design's press release remains quiet about any content partnerships. Even though the company says that the device will be able to connect to 3G, EVDO/CDMA and GSM networks, Spring Design doesn't appear to be ready to announce any partnerships there either.

Multimedia Books

Maybe the most interesting aspect of the device is that the company plans to give developers and publishers the ability to enhance the text that appears in the eInk screen with multimedia content on the LCD screen. This could open up a lot of new avenues for publishers, but at the same time, we have to wonder how many publishers would be willing to develop new content for this device. Creating an eBook version of a manuscript is easy, but adding additional content to this text could quickly become a costly undertaking.

Color Us Skeptical

Given how vague the details are, we remain skeptical about this device until we get more details. For now, all we know is that it will run Android, feature two screens and have an SD card slot, and that users will be able to cache Web content on the device and then display it on the eInk screen.

We also can't help but look at the device and think that it would be rather unwieldy to use. It is definitely exciting to see that somebody is using Android to develop an eReader, but this device seems to forgo usability for novelty. While we are all looking forward to color eInk displays, this device looks like an odd chimera that is meant to bridge the gap between these two generations. In the long run, this concept probably doesn't have much of a future.

According to news coming out of the Book Fair event, the new digital books program will launch in the first half of 2010 and will offer 400,000 to 600,000 ebooks at that time.

Although we already knew that the online store would host books in the cloud, we didn't know just how that would work. Tom Turvey, Google's director of strategic partnerships, now explains that the device does not need to be connected to the Internet to read the book after it was accessed once. He also clarified that the company is "not focused on a dedicated eReader or device of any kind." Instead, consumers would go online one time from their device of choice and afterwards, a cached version of that book would be stored so that it could be read offline at anytime. "As long as you can get onto the library, you can access it," says Amanda Edmonds, Google's director of strategic partnerships, who was speaking at O'Reilly's Tools of Change conference, also being held in Frankfurt at a venue near the Book Fair event.

Although not specified, it seems probable that the offline caching done by Google Editions will be made possible via Google Gears, a browser extension that allows website content to be taken offline and then re-synced when an Internet connection returns.

Business Models

As noted on The Bookseller, a site covering the Tools of Change conference, Google Editions will offer three business models. The first will allow a consumer to purchase the ebook from Google Books, Google's online collection of digitized books. The second will allow consumers to purchase from a partner retailer and the third would direct consumers to a publisher's website. In the first route, payments are split 63/37 in the publisher's favor. If purchasing from a retailer, that split would be 45/55 with the 45% going to the publisher and the retailer splitting the remaining 55% with Google. No decision has been made on the split for the third option, purchases made via a publisher's own website. Edmonds also noted that these splits are not set in stone just yet - discussions were "just beginning." In addition, Google may discount books from their list price where permitted, but the discount would be taken from Google's profits and not anyone else's.

Other news from the O'Reilly event pinned down the launch date of the Google Editions store. It will launch simultaneously in the U.S., U.K., and Europe in June 2010.

Google would not give the names of the device manufacturers they intend on partnering with, but Edmonds says she doubts Kindle will be one of them.

According to Merkel, the German government wants to protect its authors. Google, according to Merkel, is "just scanning books without any regard to copyright law," and "the Internet should not be exempt from copyright laws," she also adds.

In this context, it is important to note that Germany has always been extremely protective of books as a cultural product. Book retailers, for example, have to sell all new books at a set price and can only discount older or damaged books under a limited set of circumstances. It's currently not clear if these price-fixing rules also apply to eBooks.

"eBooks Won't Replace Traditional Books"

Merkel also stressed that she doesn't believe that eBooks will ever replace traditional books  - though she does mention that 'new' technologies like audio books have changed the book market over the last few years.

Google Books and the Google Book Settlement have obviously been mired in controversy from the beginning. Just last week, Google's Sergey Brin defended the project in an op-ed piece in the New York Times. The Google Book Settlement is currently on hold, and Google has until November to present a revised version of its plan.

One of the main reasons why Forrester is correcting its forecast is the fact that prices have come down (and this report was actually written before the Amazon announcement). In addition, Forrester also sees increased consumer awareness thanks to the current media buzz around eReaders. While the Kindle was mentioned 8,680 times in news stories in 2008, it has been mentioned over 15,700 times in 2009 already (including the month of September). In addition, the fact that more content is now available and that manufacturers like iRex and Sony are backing the open ePub standard is also opening up the market to buyers who previously weren't interested in Amazon's closed Kindle ecosystem.

Outlook for 2010: Even Better

For next year, Forrester expects that Barnes & Noble will become serious competition for Amazon. With the iRex Digital Reader 800 and the forthcoming Plastic Logic reader, B&N will be able to offer its customers a lineup of eReaders that can easily challenge Amazon's Kindle - though not in the international market that Amazon just entered yesterday.

Forrester also expects that Apple's mythical tablet could become a major force in the eReader market, though for the time being, the Apple tablet is obviously nothing more than a rumor.

Clearly the eReader market is growing at a rapid pace. Just yesterday, when Amazon unveiled the reduced prices for its Kindle 2 and the launch of the AT&T-powered "U.S. & International Wireless" version of the Kindle 2, Amazon's CEO and founder Jeff Bezoz pointed out in an interview with the New York Times that whenever Amazon offers both a Kindle and paper version of a book, 48% of total sales now come from the digital Kindle edition. In May, this number was 35%. While Amazon doesn't release sales numbers for the Kindle, these numbers are only possible if Amazon has sold a lot more Kindles than most analysts previously thought.

For now, B&N only advertises its iPhone, BlackBerry, and PC/Mac software readers on its site, but the company doesn't offer any compatible hardware readers just yet. Since the launch of the eBook store, B&N has announced a partnership with iRex and we are still waiting for the mythical Plastic Logic eReader to appear.

A spike in interest right after the launch of a new product is obviously nothing unusual, but this data shows that B&N could challenge the Kindle in the long run. To do so, however, B&N needs to offer users a clear alternative to Amazon's Kindle. Sony, which offers numerous eReaders that are connected to its eBook store, is obviously also trying to make a major push in the eBook market and while its numbers are slowly trending up, Amazon and the Kindle remain in a clear lead. As Compete's McGovern points out, B&N has shown that it can easily drive its customers to its eBook store - thanks, in no small part, to a very successful email campaign - but it will need to offer a hardware eReader to really take on Amazon.

Effective immediately, the Sony Publisher Portal is re-launched and open for business. Aspiring authors and independent publishers can upload Microsoft Word documents and have distro-ready e-books within hours.

In addition to working out the Smashwords deal, Sony has also announced a similar partnership with indie publishing outfit Author Solutions.

"Additionally, we recognize that it is important to provide independent publishers the opportunity to quickly and easily bring their ideas and content to a wide audience of readers."

Smashwords first launched its ebook publishing and distribution platform 16 months ago. New ebooks published via Smashwords through the Sony Publishing Portal can receive immediate distribution in the eBook Store.

For Smashwords users who have already published more than 3,000 books through Smashwords, their e-books can also gain distribution into Sony's eBook Store within the next few months.

This most recent development stands as testament to Smashwords' growing momentum. In January, Smashwords launched a distro arrangement with the Amazon-owned Lexcyle, meaning their e-books are listed in the native ebook catalog of Stanza, the e-reading app used by more than two million iPhone and iPod Touch customers.

And earlier this month, Smashwords began distributing through Barnes & Noble across such high-profile properties as properties including BarnesandNoble.com, Fictionwise, and the popular B&N eReader application.

Interested publishers can learn more at the Smashwords website.

As Forrester analyst Sarah Rotman Epps point out, iRex has to overcome some challenges because its brand is relatively unknown in the US. According to the New York Times, iRex wanted to release a Barnes & Noble branded version of the DR800SG, but those negotiations apparently didn't go very far. At the same time, though, iRex also has some advantages, especially in Europe - a market that other vendors have mostly ignored for now.

At this point, however, it's not even really about the launch of yet another eReader anymore - with Amazon, Sony, Asus, iRex, Plastic Logic, Coolreaders, and a growing number of other contenders, the market is now wide open and competition is already bringing prices down. Prices now start at $149 for refurbished 1st generation Kindles and go up to $489 for the Kindle DX, with Amazon's competitors hitting every price point in between. For most consumers, any price over $99 is still too high for an eReader, but then, hardware prices always come down sooner or later and it is only a matter of time before somebody is going to release a decent $99 eReader.

At $399, the new iRex reader is obviously one of the more expensive readers on the market right now, though its price is in line with competing wireless eReaders like the Sony Reader Daily Edition. Sony, however, offers a real touchscreen on some of its high-end readers though, something iRex has disavowed for now because it reduces the contrast of the screen.

Getting eReaders Into the Marketplace

Another important aspect of this announcement is that Best Buy will now set apart some space in its stores to feature eReaders. Until now, Best Buy only sold eReader on its website. Even though public interest in eReaders is high, only a relatively small number of people have actually held one of these devices in their hands.

For now, this new feature is only available in the United States, though according to a blog post on the Google Book Search blog, the company plans to make this feature "available elsewhere in the future."

It's almost ludicrous to argue that the eBook edition of The Lost Symbol could outsell the hardcover edition. Yes, the eBook version is currently outselling the hardcover version on Amazon. However, with 5 million copies of the hardcover version printed for the U.S. market alone, these numbers simply won't hold, especially because this is a book that will draw in a lot of readers who don't usually pick up hardcover books and don't usually buy books from Amazon but pick them up at their local Barnes & Noble, airport bookstore, or grocery store.

It's also worth noting that Amazon had been accepting pre-orders for the book for months - indeed, the pre-orders kept The Lost Symbol in Amazon's Top 100 for the last 150 days. If you own a Kindle, however, you don't need to pre-order the book as it's immediately delivered to your device anyway. Chances are that there was simply a lot of demand for the Kindle version today and most of Dan Brown's fans without a Kindle had already ordered theirs or planned to pick a copy up at a brick-and-mortar bookstore.

A Symbol of Things to Come?

That said, though, the fact that the eBook version is doing so well shows that eReaders and eBooks are on the right track. The real killer feature, here, is the instant delivery that eBooks can offer and the cheaper price (which Amazon currently subsidizes). Sure, you could leave the house and actually walk or drive to a local bookstore, but you could also get it delivered to your eReader within seconds and without ever having to get out of your pajamas. It would also be interesting to see how many of these copies end up on iPhones, but Amazon doesn't publish these numbers.

We did, however, get some interesting data from ShortCovers, a small but interesting eBook vendor who sells books in the ePub format and offers a number of mobile apps as well. For ShortCovers, the release of The Lost Symbol  meant a 2x increase in sales yesterday and the book sold more copies in one day than the Twilight series did in the last 2 months.

The demand for eBooks is picking up and is starting to reach a mainstream audience. Once the new eReaders from Plastic Logic, iRex, Asus, Sony and others become available in the next few months, the increased competition will surely drive prices for eReaders down and adoption rates up - unless, of course, Steve Jobs' prediction that nobody wants a single-purpose eReader device turns out to be right.