Sony recently announced they would be selling off the VAIO brand, however it seems that is not the only change in the works. A more recent announcement deals with Sony's Reader Store, which will soon be replaced by the Kobo eBookStore. Basically, Kobo will be the content supplier for those with a Sony Reader or Sony Xperia device.
Apple is protesting against the court-appointed antitrust monitor it was forced to pay for as part of the guilty ebook price-fixing verdict, arguing that the lawyer selected is extortionate in his fees. Former US Justice Department inspector general Michael Bromwich was elected by the US District Court to track Apple's compliance around avoiding potential antitrust behaviors, after the Cupertino firm was ruled to have colluded with publishers to drive up ebook pricing. Ironically now, however, Apple says Bromwich is himself taking advantage of missing competition to gouge with fees that amount to $1,100 per hour.
Here near the end of 2013 the comic adventure universe of Calvin & Hobbes has reached the digital realm at last, being presented as a set of ebooks for several platforms. While it's not entirely clear whether this is the doing of Bill Watterson himself or those that he'd battled for years over the rights to his own artwork, the results are in: three of the most over-produced treasury books of this century are now digital.
Apple has officially filed its appeal against the ebook trial verdict that saw it found guilty of colluding with publishers to artificially price-fix downloads. The filing, made to the US District Court in the Southern District of New York on October 3rd, sees Apple appealing not only the ruling but Judge Denise Cote's proposed injunctions, which included long-lasting restrictions on how it could negotiate media deals as well as forced monitoring by an external watchdog.
Sony has just unveiled a new version of its Reader device that it claims will revolutionize the e-Reading experience. Sporting a high-resolution touch display, an integrated snap cover, and a quick charging feature, the Sony Reader PRS-T3 is built to be long-lasting, convenient to use and a pleasure to read on.
Amazon has announced a new service for certain customers who purchase the physical version of a book called Amazon MatchBook. Under the program, those buyers will be able to grab the digital copy of the same book for a steeply discounted rate, a sort of subsidized legal format shifting endeavor that gives readers the option of having an extra-portable version on their Kindle slate.
The iBookstore lawsuit promising partial refunds for ebook buyers who paid over-the-odds for their downloads is another step closer to making payouts, with cash from Penguin and Macmillan swelling the combined coffers to $162.25m. In a new batch of emails to iBookstore customers affected by the price-fixing suit, the State Attorneys General and Class Counsel E-book Settlements responsible for managing the case - and distributing the money - confirms the new contribution from the two settling publishers, TidBITS reports, though that's not to say the cash will actually arrive any time soon.
A new set of proposed remedies suggested by the DoJ in the Apple ebook price-fixing case has tempered some of the issues the Cupertino firm complained about, but the agency maintains Apple should face tough penalties for continuing to deny any wrongdoing. The second batch of suggestions, submitted by the US Department of Justice today, come after Apple described the original set as "wildly out of proportion to any adjudicated wrongdoing or potential harm" not to mention "draconian", taking issue with calls for Amazon and other ebook vendors to be permitted links to their own download stores, and bans on any sort of negotiations with content owners that might raise the price of purchase for users.
Five major publishers have vocally protested the proposed ebook antitrust remedy the Department of Justice hopes Apple will abide by, arguing that the punishing settlement would impose "additional, unwarranted restrictions" and damage the ebook industry as a whole. Apple had described the DoJ guidelines as a "draconian and punitive intrusion", taking issue with the suggestion that it should allow third-party retailers like Amazon and B&N to link to their own download stores within apps like Kindle for iOS, and that its freedom to enter into deals with publishers be curtailed. Unsurprisingly, despite settling with the DoJ previously, five of the big publishing houses are voicing their disapproval of the remedies as well.
Apple must allow Amazon, B&N, and other ebook sellers to link directly to their stores from their ereading apps, a proposed DoJ ebook antitrust settlement has suggested, as well as forcing Apple to hold off from any multimedia agreements that might increase overall market price for five years. The proposed remedy from the Department of Justice follows Apple being found guilty last month of colluding with publishers to raise ebook pricing and force rivals to the so-called "agency model" and sets out several recommendations for how the Cupertino firm could be prevented from "conspiring to thwart competition" in the years ahead.
Apple has been found guilty of ebook price fixing, with a New York federal judge ruling today that the Cupertino firm conspired with publishers to drive up the cost in its iBookstore. The ruling will now be followed by a trial for damages, Reuters reports, which will decide how much Apple must pay the US government and several states.
Anyone who enjoys comics and prefers to go the digital route knows the frustrating aspect of not actually owning the material. Though the price for online copies of various comics is often equal to the price of a paper copy, DRM has been a staple of major US publishers as a way to mitigate what is expected to be rampant piracy when the restrictions are removed. Image Comics has eschewed this convention, however, announcing that it will allow a digital comic purchase to be downloaded.