An e-book service with more than three million titles has been rolled out by Google as the Google eBookstore. The e-books with both public-domain and current titles is aimed at competing with Amazon.com, Apple and Barnes & Noble. Google is also offering the Google eBooks Web Reader and apps for  Android-powered and Apple mobile devices.

      Google Relevant Products/Services on Monday rolled out an e-book service that aims to compete with both the gorilla and the elephant in the business. Google eBooks are now available from the new Google eBookstore.

      The Internet bookstore lets consumers browse and search what Google bills as the largest e-book collection in the world. With more than three million titles, including free classics from the public domain and current bestsellers, Google is looking to give Amazon.com and Apple a run for their digital money.

      "We designed Google eBooks to be open. Many devices are compatible with Google eBooks -- everything from laptops to netbooks to tablets to smartphones to e-readers," said Abraham Murray, product manager for Google Books. "With the new Google eBooks Web Reader, you can buy, store and read  Google eBooks in the cloud. That means you can access your ebooks like you would messages in Gmail or photos in Picasa -- using a free, password-protected Google account with unlimited e-books storage Relevant Products/Services."

Not Much Different Than Amazon

      Beyond the web reader, Google also launched free apps for both Android and Apple devices. Murray said many books allow consumers to choose the font, font sizes, and day or night reading mode, as well as the line spacing they prefer. Like the Kindle devices, the Google apps let readers pick up on a page where they left off when switching from one device to another.

      As Gartner Analyst Michael Gartenberg sees it, the Google eBookstore is a competitive effort against Amazon, Apple and Barnes & Noble. The e-books, he noted, will work across the competitive devices that are out there -- Android, iPad and iPhone. And rather than building for Mac or PC environments alone, Google is optimizing for the web.

      "This doesn't feel very differentiated from offerings that we've already seen from Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple. The prices seem fairly competitive," Gartenberg said. "You can't ignore when Google decides that a market is important enough for them to get into, but it doesn't appear that there is any significant differentiation here for the short term. If you are already buying from Amazon, why would you turn around and start buying from Google instead?"

Google Offers More Choice

      One reason Google may be betting on is consumer choice. Google isn't relying only on its eBookstore for sales. The company has also partnered with independent bookseller Alibris, as well as participating members of the American Booksellers Association. That gives Google consumers a bit more choice, since Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple have proprietary stores for their e-books.

      Murray tied Monday's launch back to Google's initial purpose for Google Books. When Google first launched its Books project in 2004, he said, the company set out to make the information Relevant Products/Services stored in the world's books accessible and useful online. Google has since digitized more than 15 million books from more than 35,000 publishers, more than 40 libraries, and more than 100 countries in more than 400 languages.

      "This deep repository of knowledge and culture will continue to be searchable through Google Books search in the research section alongside the eBookstore," Murray said. "Launching Google eBooks is an initial step toward giving you greater access to the vast variety of information and entertainment found in books. Our journey has just begun."

Source from NewsFactor Network

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