Google might be giving the e-book market one big shake up before the year is out as Google Editions is set to debut in the United States before the end of December.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the e-book retail venture has brought more independent booksellers and publishers in to the fold recently, signaling an impending launch.
In case you’re not familiar with Google Editions, the ”read anywhere” platform looks to simplify e-book reading. Users will be able to buy digital books from Google and other online e-booksellers and then be able to read the content on anything with an Internet connection and a browser. Naturally, said users will also need a (free) Google account to access the personal library where these titles will be saved.
As an additional incentive, booksellers will be able to sell Google Editions e-books on their websites. They have to share some of the revenue with Google, but hey, it’s still a new potential source of income. All of this sounds ideal, but it won’t be entirely helpful for those who already have e-book readers that are tied to particular companies.
As noted by the WSJ and others, this sets up a potential war with other e-book backers like Amazon, which requires its Kindle users to buy books directly from Amazon’s online bookstore.
Google Editions will also roll out internationally during the first quarter of 2011.
Are you interested in the Google Editions e-book platform?
