Google's answer to the eBook has launched, with the arrival of Google eBookstore. While you might greet this news with a bit of a 'so what?', being a literary geek I want to briefly look at how Google's solution differs from the other eBook solutions on the market.

No App Required

Just launch a web browser, navigate to http://books.google.com/ebooks and start browsing. This approach simplifies the store for both publisher and consumer - there's one format, one location, and it works for everyone no matter what you're viewing it on.

The Range of Novels - it can only get bigger

Google works with publishers all over the world, and more booksellers are being added constantly - popular ones like Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. But the Google model also allows for independent booksellers to advertise their books for sale and join through the eBookstore platform. eBooks provides a list of places you can purchase the eBook through when you view it so that's good news for us the readers - it'll mean prices are sure to be moer competitive.

Variety of Public Domain Novels

Meaning, free books! In Australia we are currently limited to experiencing Google eBooks through the public domain novels - classics like Sherlock Holmes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) and Emma (Jane Austen). This will remain until Google does it's deal with Australian publishing houses.

Books in the Cloud

Like many other Google products, the books you buy are stored in the Google Cloud. This means that they're recorded against your current google account, that you might use for applications such as Gmail, Google Documents or Google Analytics. On the up side, this means no large downloading of novels onto your device, be it phone or computer. On the down side, this means that in order to read your book, you must have an active internet connection at the time of reading.

Considering Google's proficiency for doing big things properly, I think we can safely say that it won't take long for eBooks to take off and establish itself as one of the leaders in eBook options.

+ Back to blog home

Posted in: General, What's New