Technology

Justice Department to sue over e-book pricing; Google creates a one-stop shop for digital content; Scholastic launches beta version e-reading app; Lulu.com and NACS Media Solutions in self-publishing partnership; OverDrive acquires Australian e-book company

Hiring the right firm to conduct a telecom audit can take the pain out of analyzing system inefficiencies and fees, lead to a phone company and Internet provider that better suit your business needs, and save you thousands of dollars.

This week, BTW’s new technology feature provides an overview of common e-reader devices and their compatibility with Google eBooks.

Many indie booksellers have successfully partnered with self-published authors for years, and the growing popularity of digital formats doesn’t mean these relationships have to end.

ABFFE honored; Health care law headed to Supreme Court; Amazon unveils tablet; Lee and Rideau win Dayton Literary Peace Prizes; Before Columbus Foundation names American Book Award winners

Since July 4, NCIBA Executive Director Hut Landon has been visiting IndieCommerce stores to talk about e-books and provide demonstrations for store staff. Landon walks booksellers through the buying process from downloading Adobe Digital Editions to purchasing e-books using the Nook and iPad.

Award-winning author Margaret Atwood’s talk at ABA’s closing plenary session took listeners on an entertaining ramble from her first fiction characters through a brief history of the evolution of books and language to her thoughts on the future of the book and bookselling.

At Tools of Change Frankfurt, Google Editions announced its plans to launch in the U.S. by year's end, with international launches following in 2011, as reported by The Bookseller. ABA announced recently that member stores with IndieCommerce websites will be able to sell Google Editions when the product launches.

With the help of technology, publisher William Morrow has begun building excitement for the January release of Conor Grennan’s memoir, Little Princes: One Man's Promise to Bring Home the Lost Children of Nepal.

To those bookstore owners who do not fully comprehend the extent of their liability under the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standard, be warned that what you don't know can hurt you – and can be very costly.

Above the Treeline has launched Serendipity, a new service that enables small publishers to use the features of its Edelweiss digital catalog product.

Google announced last week that it has expanded the features available to small businesses through its Google Places service. The changes give business owners the opportunity to provide more information to consumers through Google's Local Search results.

Daniel Clancy, director of Google Books, offered a keynote presentation at the Winter Institute's Technology Day that provided booksellers with insights into plans for Google Editions, launching later this year, as well as a deeper understanding of the challenges of the e-book marketplace.

Daniel Clancy, director of Google Books, will be the keynote lunch speaker at the Winter Institute's Technology Day, on Wednesday, February 3. Clancy, who has given tech talks at a variety of venues, including South by Southwest and Stanford University, will discuss the soon-to-be-launched Google Editions and diversity in the e-book marketplace.

This week, the American Booksellers Association presented IndieCommerce members with a roadmap of upgrades and new features planned for the first half of 2010. ABA also assured members that, in the wake of the staff reorganization announced last week, IndieCommerce remains an extremely high priority and that the recent changes would put staff in a stronger position to respond to customer service questions and to implement new features.