Is the end near for Mobipocket?

[krischik]

Originally Posted by zerospinboson

.. That's really because AAC is part of a lot of low-bandwidth mpeg4 implementations. Hasn't really got anything to do with format superiority, as the quality is not noticeably different between mp3 and aac.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance...ments_over_MP3

Martin

[zerospinboson]

Originally Posted by krischik

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance...ments_over_MP3

Martin

Oh, sure, there are technical advantages.. but as long as the source is a redbook cd (and especially in the current climate where everything has a dynamic range of 5dB or less), they hardly matter.
Full vbr mode is cute, but there are very few samples on which lame really fails (especially since you can report those samples on HA to see if they can do something about them) as it is; 'transparent' (to 99% of listeners), after all, means just that.

[ireadiwrite]

Originally Posted by Steve Jordan

Amazon seems to be doing its damndest to segregate the int'l e-book market, removing Mobi from all but American hands. That really bites, for two reasons: One, it limits the potential number of authors who would like to be part of the Kindle store; and two, it limits the amount of foreign works that will be available to Kindle owners (since foreign authors will have little access and less incentive to create books for the Kindle).

Fortunately, independents can still create and sell Mobi-formatted e-books... they just can't do it through the large commercial aggregators. You may see many more indie websites popping up soon.

But I can't see this doing anything except helping to promote more widespread use of ePub.

I am quite enjoying reading all the comments. But just wanted to come back to some comments made at the beginning of the thread. We're an independent, digital small press - and Canadian. We publish new authors in literary fiction and other genres in non DRM mobi, epub and pdf. With about 25 titles, we are and will be distributing to other ebookstores, including Books on Board, Fictionwise, Shortcovers, and working with Ingram for those we cannot deal with directly.

So a few months ago, I sign up with Mobipocket and get a publishers license through eBookbase - because Amazon tells me/us that's how wants to deal with international publishers. Alas, Amazon does not pick up our books in the Kindle store and after many frustrating days trying to figure out why, now tells me that they will not pick them up, even though they've been successfully added and available on MP's site for at least a month now. But 'don't worry' they say, they'll 'dispose of my paperwork in a secure manner'. Subsequent emails to them tell me the same thing as the first post, that they do not accept titles from non American companies, yadda yadda.

I have asked them how to get our titles on there, and of course, no response. I sit here in the incredulity of it all, trying to do business in this global economy and here is a company whose insular policies preclude the rest of the world from doing business with them! And btw, they won't accept titles from Ingram either (which blew me away), because they (Amazon) prefer to do business directly with publishers.

Anyway, enough of my rant, but I'm frustrated that I have no way of offering our author's books to that market, which despite the fact that I even if I could, I would NEVER buy a Kindle, is big.

Well, thanks for the info all, it's nice to hear that I'm not the only one with these frustrations - Best, Michelle.

[Hellmark]

This sort of stuff is exactly why I did not buy a kindle.

[pilotbob]

Originally Posted by ondabeach

Do I feel sorry for people who have bought a kindle... absolutely, are people going to be disadvantaged by amazons decisions.... absolutely, they, unfortunately are casualties of war.

Thanks but you don't have to feel sorry for me. If ePub does become the standard I will have no problem using it with my Kindle. ePub is designed to be a good "storage" format so converting from it to other formats will be very simple indeed.

Also, my Kindle is backed by Amazon.... and as it is their is more content for the Kindle than every other other device out there.

It's those folks the bought an HD-DVD device that I feel bad for... well, not really...

BOb

[ondabeach]

MP4 is a video file extension, apple's music file format extension is M4A. But we're splitting hairs on a moot point anyway as the issue is formats for eBooks and epub is clearly the way to go. Not even Apple will bother with a competing format as their is already software for the iPhone to read epubs.

The big question is when will Amazon release a kindle (or firmware upgrade for existing models) to support epub, they have no choice but to fall into line in the long run. If they had any sense or cared about their customers they'd also offer people who have purchased books from them in the past the ability to re-download their books in epub format. For the small amount it would cost them (relative to the the depth of their pockets) it would do a hell of a lot to improve their reputation amongst their customers, existing and prospective.

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by ondabeach

The big question is when will Amazon release a kindle (or firmware upgrade for existing models) to support epub, they have no choice but to fall into line in the long run.

Personally, I doubt they will. But only because I suspect Amazon's "long game" is to license the Kindle software to other hardware makers, and eventually get out of the hardware business (which they only got into to break out the Kindle store).

Most likely, a non-Amazon-sold device will be able to read the Kindle format as well as others like ePub, effectively solving the problem of a closed Kindle system. We'll see.

[krischik]

Originally Posted by ondabeach

If they had any sense or cared about their customers

This is where you went wrong. Everything I have seen out of Amazon since Tue Apr 21 2009 neither shows any sense at all nor is it any good for customers.

In the beginning I thought Amazon turned evil but not I rather thing they turned stupid.

Martin

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by EowynCarter

That was done long ago, with that decition not to allow other drm was taken.

It coudn't end any other way.... I've seen that comming the day i learned about bookeen switching to ePub, and the reasons behind the no mobi support. Americans are taking the worse of it. Unless amazon switch to ePub (we can dream right !) , it will end with sony using ePub, amazon using mobi. Ouch !

Mobipocket had a huge opportunity to make real headway and become the #1 eBook format. Sony wanted to add Mobipocket to their Readers and Mobipocket said no. If Mobipocket has allowed this, ePub would not be a big deal right now. Way to kill off what could have made your business very successful. Mobipocket is commuting a slow self-made death.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by DaleDe

It is likely that B&N will release an eReader application that will read both formats but yes, in the long run I think the format will die. It was targeted and too small a device.

I think ePub with eReader DRM will not succeed as most readers won't handle it and thus, most people won't buy a reader with this form of DRM.

eReader really does need to go away. It's so obsolete and the backwards compatibility for palm type screens is atrocious. If you have eBooks that you really need to be able to see the graphics (like say a map), good luck to that.

[DawnFalcon]

[QUOTE=ondabeach;586470]MP4 is a video file extension...[QUOTE]

Actually MP4, MPEG-4 Part 14, is a container format for audio and video both. The name mp4 is confusing, and quite a few advertised "mp4" players don't actually play mp4 audio.

ireadiwrite - ...

It's amazing what lenghts some companies will go not to deal with other, perfecrly legitimate, companies for no apparent reason.

[AnemicOak]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I think ePub with eReader DRM will not succeed as most readers won't handle it and thus, most people won't buy a reader with this form of DRM.

As long as they're OK with not being the only DRM on a device, which it looks like they are, then it would be quite easy for device manufacturers to include both ADE ePub and eReader ePub. eReader DRM is certainly more friendly than ADE DRM is.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by AnemicOak

As long as they're OK with not being the only DRM on a device, which it looks like they are, then it would be quite easy for device manufacturers to include both ADE ePub and eReader ePub. eReader DRM is certainly more friendly than ADE DRM is.

ADE DRM allows for library ePub. Plus, we can strip the DRM from ADE DRM. eReader is just going to be an annoying mess.

[krischik]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

Mobipocket had a huge opportunity to make real headway and become the #1 eBook format. Sony wanted to add Mobipocket to their Readers and Mobipocket said no. If Mobipocket has allowed this, ePub would not be a big deal right now. Way to kill off what could have made your business very successful. Mobipocket is commuting a slow self-made death.

At that time Mobipocket was not master of it's own destination any more - so some "Mobipocket" should read "Amazon" in your post.

[Shaggy]

Originally Posted by krischik

At that time Mobipocket was not master of it's own destination any more - so some "Mobipocket" should read "Amazon" in your post.

With the moves they've been making, it certainly looks like Amazon's plan all along was to kill off the Mobipocket format.