Press Release

Industry-wide Promotion to Highlight eBooks

eBooks by Bestselling Authors Released and Discounted

August 5th, 2002

New York, NY -- Providing a new incentive for consumers to add eBooks to their summer reading repertoire, the Open eBook Forum announces Open an eBook Week seven days of deep discounts on eBooks, a host of new electronic title introductions and other special promotions, running from August 5th through the 11th. Information and links to the many special offers including eBooks from best-selling authors can be found at www.openanebook.org. The Open eBook Forum is a non-profit international industry trade and standards organization comprised of leading for-profit international publishers, distributors and technology companies that champion electronic books as a convenient and exciting platform for reading.

Throughout Open an eBook Week, all major eBook retailers will offer a wide variety of popular titles at discount prices. Anyone with a device connected to the Internet can take advantage of popular titles in eBook format. eBooks released during Open an eBook Week include works by David Baldacci, Rita Emmett, Robert Jordan, Lawrence Block, Elizabeth Peters, Neil Gaiman, Stephanie Laurens, Peter Abrahams, Leonard Maltin and Ethan Hawke.

Among other special events during Open an eBook Week:

  • Simon & Schuster will inaugurate Open an eBook Week with the publication of the entire Ernest Hemingway collection in electronic format;
  • Microsoft will celebrate Open an eBook Week by offering a free download in the Microsoft Reader eBook format of best-selling author Robert Jordan's new publication, Glimmers;
  • Walker & Company and Palm Digital Media will be offering a free download of The Procrastinator's Handbook with a purchase of the sequel to the best-selling title, The Procrastinator's Child.

Titles will be available in Adobe Acrobat Reader, Gemstar eBook, Franklin, MobiReader, Microsoft Reader and Palm Reader formats, facilitating easy download onto desktop and laptop computers, PDAs or handheld devices.

The electronic publishing industry is thriving. Every segment of the publishing industry is expanding their operations to include electronic books, and sales are growing rapidly, said Open eBook Forum executive director Nicholas Bogaty. eBooks are enjoying global success in the classroom, in the business community, with travelers, and with vision and learning impaired readers. We're spearheading this promotion to inspire anyone who hasn't tried them yet to open an eBook and discover their tremendous benefits."

Publishers making eBook titles available for Open an eBook Week include HarperCollins, AOL Time Warner Book Group, Random House, Simon & Schuster, Walker & Co., Penguin Putnam, Stonehouse Press and McGraw-Hill. Retailers offering discounts include amazon.com, barnesandnoble.com, ebooks.com, Palm Digital Media, Gemstar- TV Guide International and Previewport. Technology companies including Adobe, Gemstar-TV Guide International, Microsoft, Franklin Electronic Publishers and Palm Digital Media are working with their publishing and retail partners on special promotions, and are publicizing Open an eBook Week to their customers through mailings and special offers.

In addition, Agfa Monotype and OverDrive will be making special offers on their products and services to the electronic publishing industry.

Visitors to www.openanebook.org can find information about Open an eBook Week specials. A sampling of eBook titles offered at discount prices throughout Open an eBook Week include:

  • A Love of My Own, by E. Lynn Harris
  • A Perfect Crime, by Peter Abrahams
  • Ain't Gonna Study War No More, Milton Meltzer
  • All About Love, by Stephanie Laurens
  • American Gods, by Neil Gaiman
  • Any Way the Wind Blows, by E. Lynn Harris
  • Ash Wednesday, by Ethan Hawke
  • Coraline, by Neil Gaiman
  • The Day the Sky Fell, by Milton Meltzer
  • Distant Shores, by Kristen Hannah
  • The Dive from Clausens Pier, by Ann Packer
  • Flesh Tones, by MJ Rose
  • Glimmers, by Robert Jordan
  • The Golden One, by Elizabeth Peters
  • How to Become a Great Boss, by Jeffrey J. Fox
  • Fearless: Alone, by Francine Pascal
  • Fearless: Super Edition: Before Gaia, by Francine Pascal
  • Nancy Drew: The Clue on the Crystal Dove, by Carolyn Keene
  • The Hardy Boys: Past and Present Danger, by Franklin W. Dixon
  • The entire Ernest Hemingway collection
  • Lion in the Valley, by Elizabeth Peters
  • The Longest Way Home, by Robert Silverberg
  • The Mocking Program, by Alan Dean Foster
  • On a Wicked Dawn, by Stephanie Laurens
  • On a Wild Night, by Stephanie Laurens
  • Out on the Cutting Edge, by Lawrence Block
  • Private Lies, by Warren Adler
  • The Procrastinating Child, by Rita Emmett
  • Question of Bruno, by Aleksandar Hemon
  • Slander, by Anne Coulter
  • Safe Air Travel Companion, by Dan McKinnon
  • 201 Best questions to Ask in Your Job Interview, by John Kador
  • Built for Use: Driving Profitability Through User
  • Experience, by Karen Donoghe
  • Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell, by Oren Harari
  • Summer Island, by Kristin Hannah
  • Ticket to the Boneyard, by Lawrence Block
  • Total Control, by David Baldacci
  • The Tutor, by Peter Abrahams
  • The Winner, by David Baldacci
  • Chosen Prey, by John Sanford
  • Leonard Maltin's 2002 Movie and Video Guide, by Leonard Maltin
  • The Darwin Awards: Evolution in Action and The Darwin Awards II:
  • Unnatural Selection, by Wendy Northcutt

About the Open eBook Forum:

The Open eBook Forum, http://www.openanebook.org, is an international non-profit trade and standards organization for the electronic book publishing industry. Gold Sponsoring Members include technology leaders Microsoft Corporation, Adobe Systems and OverDrive. Members include leading publishing companies such as Random House, Simon & Schuster, AOL Time Warner, McGraw-Hill, HarperCollins, Scholastic and Harcourt; and educational and government agencies including the Library of Congress, American Foundation for the Blind and the National Institute of Standards and Technology; and technology, device and service companies like netLibrary, a Division of OCLC, Inc., Palm Digital Media, Gemstar-TV Guide International and Sony.