New Form of DRM? Shortcovers.com

thianliongpatpoh · 08-15-2009, 01:07 PM

I was browsing the net searching for the Angel Experiment free e-book in ePub format (still free for kindle and sony) when I discover a new ebookstore www.shortcovers.com.
Immediately I got very interested because I see Angel Experiment is offered as freebies there, and there's also a shortcovers iPod/iPhone apps available on iTunes to get the ebook from them (similar to Stanza or Kindle app).
But after downloading the app and trying to get the free e-book, i got very confused because what I experience is totally new, different from what I've experienced with Stanza and Kindle App.
Apparently, you can buy e-book but you cannot download your purchased e-book. Instead, the e-book will stay in your online digital library.
I then checked shortcovers.com FAQ, and it turned out that indeed they are not offering download of purchased e-books!
From their FAQ:

Q. Will I be able to download the files I purchase in the future?

A. We accept ePub files from publishers and this is our preferred format. We currently are not offering downloads of content but this is definitely on our road map.

Wow! Would this be the ultimate new DRM?
Any input and/or discussion on this please.

cheers

Moejoe · 08-15-2009, 01:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by thianliongpatpoh

I was browsing the net searching for the Angel Experiment free e-book in ePub format (still free for kindle and sony) when I discover a new ebookstore www.shortcovers.com.
Immediately I got very interested because I see Angel Experiment is offered as freebies there, and there's also a shortcovers iPod/iPhone apps available on iTunes to get the ebook from them (similar to Stanza or Kindle app).
But after downloading the app and trying to get the free e-book, i got very confused because what I experience is totally new, different from what I've experienced with Stanza and Kindle App.
Apparently, you can buy e-book but you cannot download your purchased e-book. Instead, the e-book will stay in your online digital library.
I then checked shortcovers.com FAQ, and it turned out that indeed they are not offering download of purchased e-books!
From their FAQ:

Q. Will I be able to download the files I purchase in the future?

A. We accept ePub files from publishers and this is our preferred format. We currently are not offering downloads of content but this is definitely on our road map.

Wow! Would this be the ultimate new DRM?
Any input and/or discussion on this please.

cheers

i thought the general consensus was that Shortcovers was a big fat joke and that their dubious business model was doomed to failure. Wasn't that what everybody was saying about them?

Steven Lyle Jordan · 08-15-2009, 01:51 PM

Most e-book readers would agree that they'd rather have copies of their e-books on their own devices. The reason is that many previous e-book vendors have abruptly and unexpectedly closed before, and if this happened here, any e-books you purchased would be gone... you could no longer access material you paid for, because it was on their now-defunct servers. In fact, other vendors have tried exactly this model, then gone under, leaving many angry customers behind.

So, if you use this vendor, you have to keep in mind that if they get in financial trouble, you could lose everything without warning.

thianliongpatpoh · 08-15-2009, 02:00 PM

Exactly. I've experienced this during amazon's tenure (sp?) with microsoft reader. Dozens of .lit (mostly trek ebooks) gone when amazon stopped selling microsoft reader format. Fortunately, I was able to get hold of that .lit drm-liberator small proggie, so I can still open/access/read my .lit ebooks - and convert them to .prc for my new reader device.
But mine is a consumer's point of view. I understand the view might be slightly or totally different from say, author's point of view.
I just can't understand how this will help the growth and popularity of ebooks.

=X= · 08-15-2009, 04:49 PM

It even worse than that, pages are Downloaded as you read so your device must be constantly connected to the internet. If you lose connection your reading is interupted or brought to a halt.

kovidgoyal · 08-15-2009, 06:09 PM

Doesn't Apple love shortcovers? IIRC they invited them to speak at some Apple lovefest or the other.

Kali Yuga · 08-15-2009, 07:12 PM

Last I checked, Google is planning the same kind of service: you can buy new e-books and view them in a browser (either online or cached) on any type of device. Publishers will set the prices, so it will almost certainly go above the $9.99 default pricing. Sounds like a winner, eh?

Sonist · 08-15-2009, 07:32 PM

I hope these schemes are the exception to "Nobody has ever lost money, by underestimating the public."

apswartz · 08-15-2009, 09:59 PM

Yech!

=X= · 08-15-2009, 10:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kali Yuga

Last I checked, Google is planning the same kind of service: you can buy new e-books and view them in a browser (either online or cached) on any type of device. Publishers will set the prices, so it will almost certainly go above the $9.99 default pricing. Sounds like a winner, eh?

Almost, it ends up google had always had the intent to control the price. The reporter incorrectly quoted the source. The newspaper later issued a retracement stating that Google would have an influence of the cost of the books.

JCKobo · 08-17-2009, 11:28 AM

Since this is my first post on MobileRead, let me introduce myself - my name is Jordan Christensen, and I am the Product Manager for Shortcovers. I've been part of the Shortcovers team since we started it within Indigo over a year ago, and I've been helping set our development roadmap.

To address the specific topic here, we definitely hear from a lot of users that they want to read their books on devices they already have, and read using the reading software they want to read with.

We currently use a custom DRM that works without our devices, but we will be releasing support for a more open reading platform in the next few weeks.

Are we going to remove DRM from our applications? We know users want DRM free reading and we are talking to publishers about opportunities to remove DRM, and all our DRM technologies are optional on a per-book basis, so as soon as publishers are comfortable delivering digital book content DRM free, we are ready to flip that switch.

zelda_pinwheel · 08-17-2009, 11:33 AM

Hi Jordan, welcome to MobileRead ! thank you so much for this information regarding Shortcovers. We're always really happy to have a dialogue directly with people from the industry.

I'm very glad to hear that you are going to be opening your offer to various dedicated devices ; i took a look at Shortcovers a while ago and the concept looked promising but... I want to download my books and read them on my Sony. i'll definitely look out for when you make that possible (it would be great if you could post a little word here when it happens !).

it's also really encouraging to hear that you're working on going drm-free, at least on a per-book basis, that's a good start. hopefully you'll manage to show the publishers that it's in everyone's best interest to do that and that drm is ultimately pointless (and expensive). please keep us posted on that front as well !

JCKobo · 08-17-2009, 12:42 PM

Hi Zelda, thanks for the kind reply. I'll be happy to post here - I don't want to spam MobileRead with our product announcements, but when we make that particular announcement, I'll be sure to mention it here.

ficbot · 08-17-2009, 12:46 PM

Jordan, as a Canadian who is very worried about the American-centric way the ebook industry seems to be moving these days (Kindle not sold in Canada, iPod Kindle app not sold in Canada, geographical restrictions etc) I am pleased to see a Canadian company enter the fray. As soon as one can read your stuff on a Sony, I'm in. Keep us posted!

Hellmark · 08-17-2009, 01:17 PM

Until the content is downloadable, I am not interested, but I do like that you guys are paying attention to the community, and trying to talk to us.

08-15-2009, 01:07 PM	#1
thianliongpatpoh Zealot Posts: 101 Karma: 218 Join Date: Aug 2008 Device: iPad	New Form of DRM? Shortcovers.com I was browsing the net searching for the Angel Experiment free e-book in ePub format (still free for kindle and sony) when I discover a new ebookstore www.shortcovers.com. Immediately I got very interested because I see Angel Experiment is offered as freebies there, and there's also a shortcovers iPod/iPhone apps available on iTunes to get the ebook from them (similar to Stanza or Kindle app). But after downloading the app and trying to get the free e-book, i got very confused because what I experience is totally new, different from what I've experienced with Stanza and Kindle App. Apparently, you can buy e-book but you cannot download your purchased e-book. Instead, the e-book will stay in your online digital library. I then checked shortcovers.com FAQ, and it turned out that indeed they are not offering download of purchased e-books! From their FAQ: Q. Will I be able to download the files I purchase in the future? A. We accept ePub files from publishers and this is our preferred format. We currently are not offering downloads of content but this is definitely on our road map. Wow! Would this be the ultimate new DRM? Any input and/or discussion on this please. cheers

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08-15-2009, 01:51 PM	#3
Steven Lyle Jordan Grand Sorcerer Posts: 8,478 Karma: 5171130 Join Date: Jan 2006 Device: none	Most e-book readers would agree that they'd rather have copies of their e-books on their own devices. The reason is that many previous e-book vendors have abruptly and unexpectedly closed before, and if this happened here, any e-books you purchased would be gone... you could no longer access material you paid for, because it was on their now-defunct servers. In fact, other vendors have tried exactly this model, then gone under, leaving many angry customers behind. So, if you use this vendor, you have to keep in mind that if they get in financial trouble, you could lose everything without warning.

08-15-2009, 02:00 PM	#4
thianliongpatpoh Zealot Posts: 101 Karma: 218 Join Date: Aug 2008 Device: iPad	Exactly. I've experienced this during amazon's tenure (sp?) with microsoft reader. Dozens of .lit (mostly trek ebooks) gone when amazon stopped selling microsoft reader format. Fortunately, I was able to get hold of that .lit drm-liberator small proggie, so I can still open/access/read my .lit ebooks - and convert them to .prc for my new reader device. But mine is a consumer's point of view. I understand the view might be slightly or totally different from say, author's point of view. I just can't understand how this will help the growth and popularity of ebooks.

08-15-2009, 04:49 PM	#5
=X= Wizard Posts: 3,671 Karma: 12205348 Join Date: Mar 2008 Device: Galaxy S, Nook w/CM7	It even worse than that, pages are Downloaded as you read so your device must be constantly connected to the internet. If you lose connection your reading is interupted or brought to a halt.

08-15-2009, 06:09 PM	#6
kovidgoyal creator of calibre Posts: 45,335 Karma: 27182818 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Mumbai, India Device: Various	Doesn't Apple love shortcovers? IIRC they invited them to speak at some Apple lovefest or the other.

08-15-2009, 07:12 PM	#7
Kali Yuga Professional Contrarian Posts: 2,045 Karma: 3289631 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle 4 No Touchie	Last I checked, Google is planning the same kind of service: you can buy new e-books and view them in a browser (either online or cached) on any type of device. Publishers will set the prices, so it will almost certainly go above the $9.99 default pricing. Sounds like a winner, eh?

08-15-2009, 07:32 PM	#8
Sonist Apeist Posts: 2,126 Karma: 381090 Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: The sunny part of California Device: Generic virtual reality story-experiential device	I hope these schemes are the exception to "Nobody has ever lost money, by underestimating the public."

08-15-2009, 09:59 PM	#9
apswartz e-book reader Posts: 41 Karma: 16 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: North Carolina Device: Kindle Paperwhite, Google Play Books on Samsung Tablet	Yech!

08-17-2009, 11:28 AM	#11
JCKobo Kobo Product Guy Posts: 244 Karma: 36848 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo Vox	Since this is my first post on MobileRead, let me introduce myself - my name is Jordan Christensen, and I am the Product Manager for Shortcovers. I've been part of the Shortcovers team since we started it within Indigo over a year ago, and I've been helping set our development roadmap. To address the specific topic here, we definitely hear from a lot of users that they want to read their books on devices they already have, and read using the reading software they want to read with. We currently use a custom DRM that works without our devices, but we will be releasing support for a more open reading platform in the next few weeks. Are we going to remove DRM from our applications? We know users want DRM free reading and we are talking to publishers about opportunities to remove DRM, and all our DRM technologies are optional on a per-book basis, so as soon as publishers are comfortable delivering digital book content DRM free, we are ready to flip that switch.

08-17-2009, 11:33 AM	#12
zelda_pinwheel zeldinha zippy zeldissima Posts: 27,827 Karma: 921169 Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Paris, France Device: eb1150 & is that a nook in her pocket, or she just happy to see you?	Hi Jordan, welcome to MobileRead ! thank you so much for this information regarding Shortcovers. We're always really happy to have a dialogue directly with people from the industry. I'm very glad to hear that you are going to be opening your offer to various dedicated devices ; i took a look at Shortcovers a while ago and the concept looked promising but... I want to download my books and read them on my Sony. i'll definitely look out for when you make that possible (it would be great if you could post a little word here when it happens !). it's also really encouraging to hear that you're working on going drm-free, at least on a per-book basis, that's a good start. hopefully you'll manage to show the publishers that it's in everyone's best interest to do that and that drm is ultimately pointless (and expensive). please keep us posted on that front as well !

08-17-2009, 12:42 PM	#13
JCKobo Kobo Product Guy Posts: 244 Karma: 36848 Join Date: Aug 2009 Location: Toronto Device: Kobo Vox	Hi Zelda, thanks for the kind reply. I'll be happy to post here - I don't want to spam MobileRead with our product announcements, but when we make that particular announcement, I'll be sure to mention it here.

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08-17-2009, 12:46 PM	#14
ficbot Wizard Posts: 2,409 Karma: 4132096 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Kindle Paperwhite/iOS Kindle App	Jordan, as a Canadian who is very worried about the American-centric way the ebook industry seems to be moving these days (Kindle not sold in Canada, iPod Kindle app not sold in Canada, geographical restrictions etc) I am pleased to see a Canadian company enter the fray. As soon as one can read your stuff on a Sony, I'm in. Keep us posted!

08-17-2009, 01:17 PM	#15
Hellmark Wizard Posts: 2,592 Karma: 4290425 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Foristell, Missouri, USA Device: Nokia N800, PRS-505, Nook STR Glowlight, Kindle 3, Kobo Libra 2	Until the content is downloadable, I am not interested, but I do like that you guys are paying attention to the community, and trying to talk to us.