The gadget the size of a single paperback will be capable of storing
thousands of novels or reference books.
Its creators say its digital display will be better than the print
quality of most books.
Users will be able to download entire books from the Internet
in the same way music fans download their favourite tracks on
to their iPod.
The e-book which is expected to sell for between £250 and
£300, about the same price as an iPod could be available
in Britain as early as next year. Owners will pay about £5
for each download, slightly less than the average paperback. However,
it might be possible to freely access classics such as the works
of Charles Dickens, which have no copyright.
Until now, most firms have been reluctant to launch any type of
e-book because portable electronic screens have proved harder
to read than the printed word.
But now technology giant Philips has developed digital displays
which look like paper and can be read at any angle and in any
light. Its device developed in co-operation with a company called
E Ink Corporation uses ‘electronic ink to create screens
that are six times brighter than traditional liquid-crystal displays
used in flat-panel TVs and computers.
It is set up as a two-page screen, just like a real book, which
can be turned at the push of a button.
Peter Kurstjens, business development manager at F Ink, said:
‘The number-one advantage is readability. When people first
see it, they don’t even believe that it s a display they
really think it s paper ‘The publishing industry is sure
that before long people will shift from books, magazines and regular
newsprint to reading the same content on an electronic device.
Philips says it will not launch its own e-book. Instead, it plans
to share the technology with other manufacturers.
Sony is expected to have one ready for release in the Far East
before the end of the year. If that proves successful, it could
be launched in Europe in 2005 Many other firms are likely to follow
with similar products if they can strike deals with publishers
willing to make their literature available on the Internet. However9
the technology is not expected to threaten traditional hardcovers
and paperbacks.
Sydney Davies, from the Booksellers Association, said: ‘The
long-tern death of the book has been talked about for so long
and the number of books published every year keeps going up and
up. We don t see this as a problem because to give people another
way to access books is great.
‘But people will always like to have a book in their hands
and no matter how good an electronic
screen is, it is not the same thing. You cannot compare it to
music, which is an intangible thing anyway. Publishers will also
be very reluctant to let their copyrights out on electronic networks
because of the risk of piracy, which the music industry is still
struggling with.
copyright
Daily Mail
Footnote:-
I
was quite intrigued by this article. I was unaware that it was
possible to download books from the internet, and whilst the e-book
hardware as described in this article is not as yet available,
books are. As a trial I download 3 books which i could read on
my pc using Adobe Reader 6. downloaded free from the internet.
All the books I downloaded were also free due to their copyright
being outdated. The books were The Tale of 2 Cities, 670 pages
long, Little Women, 860 pages long and a gem book.
I
will be keeping my eyes open to see what further developments
are made in this field and hope it is not too long before the
e-book is available.
Geof
Walsh.
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