For those of you who may have forgotten, Google did launch an e-book store of its own in 2010. Google eBookstore was an exciting project that had the potential to put a lot of pressure on other top players in the e-book industry. Since we did not have e-readers that came integrated with this store, using its ebooks were a bit painful. iriver Story HD will change that. This exciting e-reader, which will make its debut soon, will give its owners the chance to download books from Google’s ebook store without needing a computer.

Google eBooks are compatible with plenty of e-readers these days. The trouble is one would have to transfer each book to a PC before pushing it to those devices. With iriver Story HD, there is no need for that. Starting July 17th, this device will be available for sale in Target stores. iriver is the first manufacturer to launch an e-reader integrated with Google eBooks but more could follow soon. The device will offer:

• WiFi Google ebook downloads
• 6 inch display with 768 * 1024 resolution
• 6 weeks of battery life
• support for EPUB, PDF, DJVU formats
• …

This is a pretty exciting device and will be available for $139.99. Are you excited already?

1. sign up for Google Books Partner Program: in order to upload and add your book to Google’s eBook Store, you will need to sign up for a Google Books Partner account. All you have to do is provide your personal and company information, and you are well on your way.

The nice thing about working with Google is that you can use your existing Google account to save yourself some time and get started with this program quickly.

Have not used Google Accounts in the past? You can always sign up for a new one.

2. enter your book information and upload: once you have logged on to your account, you can upload your PDF files and add them to Google eBook Store. Just make sure you name your PDF file the right way and enter the right buy link URL for your book. Make sure you have the rights to sell your book in the territory you define.

Things to Remember:

• Naming your book: you need to follow Google’s naming guideline to allow Google to process your books more effectively. The main content of your book should be named <ISBN>_content.pdf if you plan to submit your book with an ISBN (need to do so for ePub files). Otherwise, you can just go with YourBookName.pdf format.
• Set Books Browsable %: determines the percentage of pages that users can view during a 30 day period (from 20% to 100%).

As you can see, uploading your e-book to Google eBookStore is quite straightforward. It is a shame that these e-books won’t be compatible with Kindle. That should not stop you from submitting your work to Google or trying the ebooks available in this store.

P.S. got more questions about this service? Don’t forget to ask them here.

Google is one of the most innovative companies around the world. The company is not only good at developing new products and services but is particularly very competent in taking advantage of others’ hard work to grow its own business. Take the case of Apple iPhone. While many experts sided with Google during that episode (which is still ongoing), there is no question that Google is known for entering and dominating markets like no other company. So it’s no surprise that other companies are always wary of Google coming after their lunch.

Apple may have held off Google for now, but it seems Amazon will have to do so as well. Google is currently not planning its own e-book reader. The company is not in the hardware business, and it clearly knows what its core capabilities are. That is why it is focusing on developing a killer e-book store (Google Editions) that could challenge the supremacy of Amazon in the e-book reader market. Amazon has a huge advantage over its competitors with its Kindle store. But Google is planning to target all e-book readers that can run a browser by enabling their owners to download books through the web easily. So you won’t have to rely on Amazon or any other e-book provider (other than Google) to get your hands on more content on your e-book reader.

Google’s Book project has been quite controversial, but Google Editions will may now enable the company to make money from its venture. It’s a real smart strategy that doesn’t involve Google getting into the hardware business, something that many have argued Amazon should have done as well. Amazon is doing its best to branch out its Kindle platform to other mobile devices such as the iPhone. Google will pose a real challenge to Amazon. For starters, the company will give publishers yet another avenue to get their work in front of more people. They get to make some money in the process as well. More importantly, Google is leveraging the current trends in the e-book industry to reach out to more people through the web. Many upcoming e-book readers (and mobile devices) allow you to access the web through a browser, and that’s where Google comes in. Instead of focusing on a single proprietary platform, Google is using the universal “web” platform to put pressure on companies such as Apple and Amazon.

Will Google Editions kill Amazon Kindle? I doubt it. It will certainly raise the bar and make the e-book market more competitive for all the parties involved. At the same time, Google has been all but controversial when it comes to its approach to the e-book business. Many experts are concerned that Google may not play by the rules and could get too powerful to rein in. So far, Google promises openness and more options to e-book fans. Being able to buy from Google exclusive publishers, Amazon and other retailers through Google Editions is certainly interesting. But will retailers such as Amazon play ball?

Google has officially declared war on Amazon for the e-book market supremacy. Unlike most companies involved in the e-book industry, Google does not have its own reader, but it has Sony and Coolerreads. Google and Amazon have been at it for a while now. Amazon is not a big fan of Google Books project. In fact, there are some giants (Microsoft and Yahoo) among the opposition. But that hasn’t stopped Google from trying to take over the world. Google has given a hand to Sony by bringing over a million titles to Sony store. Now Interead also gets a chance to use those books on its own e-book reader, Cool-er.

Cool-er reader is a cool looking e-book reader that does look a bit like a giant iPod, and it supports 19 formats including popular doc formats such as ePub and PDF. By partnering up with Cool-er reader and Sony, Google is sending a signal to Amazon that it has no intention of backing down in the e-book industry. It’s true that those million titles are all books in public domain, but that doesn’t take too much away from the fact that Sony and Interead customers will have many new titles to consume on their e-book readers.

It’s still not clear how Amazon will respond to Google’s latest attempt in the e-book industry. The company is trying to stop Google in its tracks with the help of companies such as Microsoft and Yahoo. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Amazon is thinking about adopting some of those other document formats that we have come to love. At the end of the day, most of the e-book readers on the market won’t be a threat to Amazon Kindle. By adopting some of those popular document formats, Amazon can raise the stakes in e-book industry wars. One thing is for certain. When companies compete, consumers win.

Your take: is Google the king maker in the e-book industry?

Many experts have talked about in the past that whichever company solves the content access riddle will probably win the e-book reader wars. It’s given that Sony was in the game way before Amazon entered the market. But Amazon’s innovative features and the overall Kindle experience has given Amazon a huge momentum in the e-book market. To give Amazon credit, it has kept up the pressure by introducing Kindle DX to reach to more market segments. But other competitors such as Sony and Plastic Logic are finally getting what the game’s about: content and convenience.

I recently wrote about Plastic Logic partnering up with Barnes & Noble to bring a huge library of content to Plastic Logic Reader owners. Sony has been forming its own partnerships, joining forces with Google to bring Google Books project to Sony Reader. Google Books Project gives Sony Readers access to 1 million public domain books which should make Sony Reader an decent alternative to Amazon Kindle. Amazon can always pick up Google Books as well, but at this point it doesn’t have any plans to.

Sony and Plastic Logic have addressed their content access issues a bit in the past few days, but they need to get things right with their devices as well. Amazon Kindle is by far the best designed e-book reader on the market, and the fact that Amazon is already working on color Kindle and more innovative designs should keep these companies worried. Sony Readers are very capable as well, but they are not Amazon Kindle but cost almost as much.

Sony and Plastic Logic seem like decent competitors to Amazon, but Apple seems to be poised to steal their thunder with its tablet, expected to be released in September. Plastic Logic has been in the works for a while but the manufacturer has taken too much time to introduce the device to the market. Sony had the lead in this market but did not build on it. So it’d be hard to see where Sony goes from here. It could all come down to what Apple does with its tablet. It will certainly not be just an e-book reader, and that’s what makes it a dangerous competitor.

Your take: what do you think Sony and Plastic Logic need to do to stop Amazon Kindle’s momentum?

Google has been shooting for world domination for years now. Google is not afraid to go after Apple to challenge iPhone or challenge Microsoft in the netbook market. So it’s not a surprise that Amazon expects a fierce challenge in its potential showdown with Google in the near future.  No wonder Amazon’s blood is boiling with Google expanding its Book Search service to provide even more content to its visitors. Under a deal between Google and Authors Guild, Google has the exclusive rights to orphan works. It’s no surprise that Jeff Bezos doesn’t like it one bit:

We have strong opinions about that issue which I’m not going to share … But, clearly, that settlement in our opinion needs to be revisited and it is being revisited.

Amazon is not the only company that is concerned with Google’s deal. Google needs to pass a few legal hurdles to get its hands on these books. And if Google has the exclusive rights to these books, how is Amazon going to digitize “all the books in the world?” Perhaps Amazon is more worried about Google selling books than its deal with Authors Guild. Google is wandering into Amazon’s territory, and you can expect Amazon to play even more offense in the future. Google may not be a direct threat to Amazon in the e-book market just yet, but any company that has discounted Google in the past has lived to regret it. Besides, when companies play cat and mouse, consumers win!

Your take: should Amazon play more offense against Google?

You thought Apple may be the toughest competitor to Amazon in the e-book market (with its upcoming MediaPad)? Think again. Google did announce a while back that it was planning to compete with Amazon (in an indirect way). But who knew Google had grand plans for the e-book market? Google announced that it is working on an e-book ecosystem that will put a whole lot of e-books in the hands of consumers. And unlike Amazon, Google publishers will get to set their own price.

Google has not decided whether its ebooks will be copy-protected. It’d be interesting to see whether Google tries to one up Amazon by making its ebooks available without it. Here is what Google’s spokesman had to say about Google’s big new project:

we hope to give publisher partners an additional way to sell their books by allowing users to purchase access to partner program books online. We want to build and support a digital book ecosystem to allow our partner publishers to make their books available for purchase from any Web-enabled device.

Google’s Book Partnership Program will offer consumers yet another way to access to a whole lot of titles to consume on their netbooks or even Kindles. I don’t believe Google will introduce an e-book reader to compliment its ebooks service, but Apple might! Google’s move can level the playing field in this market a bit. A lot of start-ups (e.g. Plastic Logic) and established companies (Sony) have trouble competing with Amazon due to their lack of access to enough ebook titles. But now they will have access to Google’s huge book database, and they can spend more time improving their hardware to go head to head against Amazon. And how about Apple MediaPad? Will Apple pounce on this opportunity to mount a serious challenge against Amazon Kindle? One thing is for certain. When companies compete, we win. And a competition between Google and Amazon will be a sight to see in the upcoming months!

Your take: will Google’s latest project put Amazon under real pressure? Can Google kill Amazon Kindle indirectly by allowing more Kindle killers to emerge out of nowhere?

A few months ago, I wrote a piece on how Google was building its content network for a potential show-down with Amazon over the e-book market supremacy. There was never a question that Google would not come up with its own hardware in this market. But a partnership with a Kindle competitor was always on the cards. Sony and Google seem to have finally formed that partnership that instantly makes Sony Reader more attractive and a more worthy challenger to Amazon Kindle.

The agreement between Google and Sony makes Sony’s ebook store the largest store around. Sony Reader owners will now have access to 600,000+ titles whereas Kindle owners can find only 240,000 titles in Kindle store. It’s no surprise to see Sony executives jumping in joy as a result of this agreement. Here is what one Sony official had to say:

We have focused our efforts on offering an open platform and making it easy to find as much content as possible, and our partnership with Google is another step in that direction

While this move makes Sony Reader a very attractive option, there are still many issues with the hardware that Sony needs to solve to properly challenge Kindle. Google is a wild card in this market. It has successfully scanned over 7 million books since 2004 (but can only offer the ones with expired copyrights). And Google is not stopping there. It has the exact same goal as Jeff Bezos – to digitize all books around the world. Let’s just say Google is much closer to that goal than Amazon. That makes Google a potential king maker in the e-book market.

What we don’t know about this agreement is whether it has an exclusivity option. Amazon can always partner up with Google (though it may have to provide support for ePub) or it can continue expanding its digital library to keep all the profits to itself. Either way, this new agreement has just leveled the playing field a bit in the e-book market. Sony Reader is no Kindle beater just yet, but at least you have lots of books to read on it. That’s a big step in the right direction.

Recently, I read an article about Google’s book scanning project (book search) where Google partners up with publishers, libraries, and so on to build its digital library. Google has been at it since 2005, and it has scanned about 1 million books! That got to be alarming to Amazon. Google is known for entering markets that they supposedly don’t belong in by demolishing the barriers to entry. With this huge digital content library that Google is building and with Android phones coming out, it’s not hard to connect the dots and realize that Google will be ready to pounce on Amazon’s success to offer their own e-book solution. Now, it may not be in form of a separate device like the Kindle, but the Google folks certainly left the door open there.