Ailing books retailer Borders (BGP) hopes to ring in the new year with good news on the electronic front. The company announced on Tuesday it will launch an e-book store on its Web site, with the help of Canadian digital book company Kobo -- and that a dedicated e-reader is in the works.Kobo is the new name (as of November) of Shortcovers, an independent spinoff of Canadian chain Indigo Books & Music (IDG) that has raised $16 million in funding from a consortium of international booksellers, including Borders and REDGroup Retail, Australia and New Zealand's leading book retailer.
"Our partnership and investment in Kobo is a significant step in our digital strategy of providing eBooks however our customers want to consume them," Borders Group C.E.O. Ron Marshall said in a statement. "Borders shares Kobo's vision to provide any e-book on any device, and we look forward to working closely with Kobo on content and distribution."
The partnership means Borders will begin selling Kobo-branded mobile apps and, as speculated in Canadian trade publication Quill & Quire and confirmed in The New York Times, is preparing to sell a Kobo-branded e-reader as well.
Third Challenger in the Market
Kobo (then Shortcovers) in November filed a trademark with the Canadian Intellectual Property Office for a wireless e-reader called Kobo. (A search of the U.S. Patent & Trademark office did not reveal a similar filing.) Kobo plans to release more than one version of the e-reader with wireless connectivity, to be sold in Borders bookstores, the Times reports.
Still, it's a long way from two years ago, when Borders showed no interest in anything digital -- outsourcing that job to Amazon. But is it too, little, too late for Borders?
The Money Man Behind Rick Santorum: Who Is Foster S. Friess?
Why Your 2012 Tax Bill May Jump By $8,000
Savings Experiment: Tissues vs. Toilet Paper
Savings Experiment: Snow Removal
Why the U.S. Should Get Rid of the $1 Bill
