Franklin Electronic Publishers of Burlington, N.J., broke the ice on handheld electronic book distribution this week at the Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show, announcing plans to distribute the NuvoMedia Rocket eBook through consumer electronic and computer retail outlets. Previously, eBooks were available only from the manufacturers' Web sites or through mail-order firms such as Levenger's.
According to CEO Andy Cross, Franklin will sell the readers through consumer stores beginning this spring, with a price tag under $500. Franklin will also use its Web site, www.franklin.com, to publish and sell editions of titles formatted for the Rocket eBook, known as RocketEditions. "Our alliance with NuvoMedia is a watershed for Franklin," Cross declared. "We will tap into the unlimited opportunities of Internet publishing."
Several hundred RocketEditions already exist, including titles from HarperCollins, McGraw-Hill and Macmillan Computer, publishers that have licensed their works to Franklin for its Bookman and other electronic devices.While a spokesman for Franklin said the company was investigating converting titles in Bookman format to RocketEditions, he indicated that the company has no plans at this time to sell either Rocket eBooks or RocketEditions through trade bookstores.
Franklin's Cross said the company d s not expect to see any "top line impact" from the RocketEditions deal in the current fiscal year, and added that the company expects that weakness in the third quarter may carrying into the fourth quarter ending March 31.
