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davidrothman · 10-27-2007, 10:50 AM

Straight from Hachette:

http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/st...4691103&EDATE=

The press release could have been clearer, but it would appear that Hachette is saying to distributors, e-tailers, etc., "Look, we'll give you our books in .epub and you can take it from there."

The release reads: "The new standard will enable Hachette Book Group to produce and send a single digital publication file and ISBN that can be used on any digital platform that is capable of rendering an .epub file."

At first glance this might suggest that something happening directly at the end user level.

BUT as I interpret it, Hachette will essentially be using .epub as a distribution format for other companies, which can then convert it into proprietrary formats with the proprietary DRM so dear to us all (sarcasm alert).

Certainly, the ereads.com blog presents Hachette's .epub as a distribution format: "The underlying message here is that Hachette is telling retailers that if they want to sell in a specific format it is their own responsibility to convert it to that format: Hachette will not burden itself with the cost of producing multiple formats."

See:

http://www.ereads.com/2007/10/major-...new-ebook.html .

For my take in my Publishers Weekly blog, see

http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog...350016435.html

The Hachette move is wonderful news for us standards-oriented type, but it's just a first step.

David Rothman | http://www.teleread.org/blog

10-27-2007, 10:50 AM	#6
davidrothman Connoisseur Posts: 60 Karma: 32 Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Alexandria, VA Device: Paperwhite, $50 Fire, iPad Air 2, Nexus 6, Kobo Aura H2O	Straight from Hachette: http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/st...4691103&EDATE= The press release could have been clearer, but it would appear that Hachette is saying to distributors, e-tailers, etc., "Look, we'll give you our books in .epub and you can take it from there." The release reads: "The new standard will enable Hachette Book Group to produce and send a single digital publication file and ISBN that can be used on any digital platform that is capable of rendering an .epub file." At first glance this might suggest that something happening directly at the end user level. BUT as I interpret it, Hachette will essentially be using .epub as a distribution format for other companies, which can then convert it into proprietrary formats with the proprietary DRM so dear to us all (sarcasm alert). Certainly, the ereads.com blog presents Hachette's .epub as a distribution format: "The underlying message here is that Hachette is telling retailers that if they want to sell in a specific format it is their own responsibility to convert it to that format: Hachette will not burden itself with the cost of producing multiple formats." See: http://www.ereads.com/2007/10/major-...new-ebook.html . For my take in my Publishers Weekly blog, see http://www.publishersweekly.com/blog...350016435.html The Hachette move is wonderful news for us standards-oriented type, but it's just a first step. David Rothman \| http://www.teleread.org/blog