Google have announced that they are launching Google Editions, an online electronic book store. The service plans to allow users to buy ebooks available for view on mobile devices and possible ebook readers too.
Launching next year the service will offer around half a million books for download on to various devices that have a web browser built in. Once the book has been downloaded the first time, it will then be kept for offline viewing. As you'll be using a regular internet connection on your mobile devices it will make the ebook store available in a number of places around the globe.
Prices of the books will be set by publishers with the publisher getting 45% and the retailer getting almost 55% and google take a small share of that.
"Google Editions allows retail partners to sell their books, especially those who haven't invested in a digital platform," he said. "We expect the majority (of customers) will go to retail partners not to Google. We are a wholesaler, a book distributor."
He added that Google Editions will be the first time the company will try to monetize their books project. The transactions must be simple he said, and one possibility will be using the already existing transaction platform Google Checkout.