April 06, 2004

By: Bruce Langdon
Website: http://www.1st-in-ebooks.com

Franklin to distribute NuvoMedia’s Rocket eBook to consumer electronics retailers

Turning a new page in publishing history, Franklin Electronic Publishers, Inc. and NuvoMedia, Inc. today announced an agreement by which Franklin will distribute the Rocket eBook to consumer electronics retailers. The Rocket eBook is the world’s first handheld electronic reader capable of downloading digital books from online bookstores. With the NuvoMedia strategic alliance, Franklin becomes one of the first full-service eBook retailers operating on the Internet. Under terms of the agreement, Franklin will also publish and sell content in the RocketEdition format on its own Web site – www.franklin.com. RocketEditions are encrypted titles that readers can purchase and download onto their PC for transfer to the Rocket eBook.

The Franklin Rocket eBook will be available in spring 1999 with a retail price under $500, and will be sold through leading consumer electronics stores, computer chains and office superstores. Prices for RocketEditions will be comparable to discounted prices for printed books. Franklin will offer RocketEditions on its Web site beginning in mid-1999. Franklin will display and demo the Rocket eBook at its booth (LVCC Booth #5317) at the 1999 International Consumer Electronics Show, January 7-10, 1999 in Las Vegas.

There are currently hundreds of RocketEdition titles for downloading by Rocket eBook readers. Participating publishers include Addison Wesley Longman, HarperCollins, Harvard Business School Press, Henry Holt and Company, Inc., Macmillan Computer Publishing USA, McGraw-Hill Publishing, Penguin Putnam Inc., Random House, Inc., Simon & Schuster, and St. Martin’s. Many of these publishers, including HarperCollins, McGraw-Hill, and Macmillan, already license their works to Franklin for its handheld electronic products.

"Franklin has been a pioneer in the development of handheld electronic reference books and has been very successful in selling these products," said Martin F. Eberhard, CEO and Co-founder of NuvoMedia. "NuvoMedia is very excited to partner with Franklin to get the Rocket eBook into the hands of readers through Franklin’s well established consumer electronics channels."

"Our alliance with NuvoMedia represents a watershed for Franklin as we implement our strategy to tap into the unlimited opportunities of the dynamic world of Internet publishing," said Andy Cross, President and CEO, Franklin Electronic Publishers. "We have already proven our ability to sell our handheld reference products through retail stores and the combination of the Internet and the alliance with NuvoMedia is a natural extension of our existing business.

The Rocket eBook affords us an excellent opportunity to leverage our relationships with major publishers and to offer our library of content to the expanding universe of readers who have turned to the Internet for purchasing reading material."

About The Author:

Bruce Langdon is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.1st-in-ebooks.com.  A source of information on creating, writing and publishing an e-book.