iPad iBooks: Redefining Books or Realizing eBooks?

paidContent:UK: Penguin's Upcoming iPad books

Penguin recently demoed a few "forthcoming books from iPad's iBook Store" in the video above and they give a much better sense of what the ebook can be beyond the shovelware dictated by devices such as Amazon's Kindle. Though the PC offers the potential for ebook development, history to date suggests that devices like the iPad will be required for new ideas to flourish.

One can see how such developments could affect textbooks and reference works. In fact, with both textbook rental and open textbooks on the rise, there may be an interesting opportunity for folks willing to connect the dots.

Though paid:Content:UK did not identify the event at which the above video was made, I'm assuming it was at the "Financial Times' Digital Media & Broadcasting Conference in London on Tuesday" where Penguin Group Chairman and C.E.O. John Makinson stated:

"The definition of the book itself, as far as we can see, is up for grabs."

At this point it's actually rather difficult to redefine the book which has such a solid place in human consciousness. But the ebook is certainly up for grabs as something that somehow bundles together networked multimedia in a form that is still uniquely identifiable despite having expanded, porous boundaries. It's the uniquely identifiable part that helps maintain the ebook's status as a digital object as opposed to a site or service and that's key to commercial concerns.

I think such developments put libraries in an odd situation since digital formats strike me as lending themselves more to subscription services than to outright ownership of ebooks. I also see a lot of the educational needs implied in the above video being served by websites as multimedia platforms. But I also see the above format having potential with consumers and therefore shaping expectations of library users. It feels like an odd "wait-and-see while continuing to move at digital speed" moment.

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