The future of the digital publishing industry is still up for grabs. And Borders is making a claim for it by announcing its own branded eBook store, powered by the eReading service, Kobo. Currently, the store offers 1.5 million titles available in ePub, PDF, mobile formats and more.
It is noteworthy to point out that Borders has adapted a device-neutral philosophy behind their store, which is definitely smart considering how late to the game they are. They’re entering this field after the success of Apple’s iPad, Amazon’s Kindle and Barnes and Noble’s Nook. But perhaps this strategy will help them stage a mighty comeback. If the idea of digital transfer is important to people, and they can establish themselves as a cost leader, perhaps they have a chance.
Border has already released free eReading applications for Android and Blackberry, powered by Kobo. And anyone who downloads these free apps between this Friday, July 9th and Sunday, July 11th will receive five free bestselling books. These titles include Dean Koontz’ “Frankenstein”, Lee Child’s “One Shot”, Michael Scott’s “The Alchemyst”, Julia Child’s “Kitchen Wisdom” and Jillian Michael’s “Master your Metabolism”.