eBook

Once upon a time, Amazon.com loved moms. Its free "Amazon Mom" service offered the same free two-day shipping as Amazon Prime, plus heaps of extra benefits for anyone who thought to ask for them (even dads and cousins.) But no more: Mothers' day is over at Amazon.

Tablets and e-readers were a popular gift over the holidays, so much so that the number of people who own them nearly doubled between mid-December and January, a new study finds. A report from the Pew Internet and American Life Project set to be released Monday found that 29 percent of Americans owned at least one tablet or e-reader as of the beginning of this month. That's up from 18 percent who said the same in December.

There's never a dull moment on Wall Street, especially now that we're hitting 2012's first earnings season. What will help shape the week that lies ahead? Earnings and answers from banks, Google, eBay and IBM, and a big education related announcement from Apple.

If lower prices haven't swayed you into buying an e-reader, how does a steady diet of free e-books sound? Amazon.com is introducing the Kindle Owners' Lending Library, a bonus for Amazon Prime members that lets them "borrow" an e-book from a list of hundreds once a month at no additional cost.

New startup Booktracks is creating soundtracks for e-books with technology that tracks your reading speed and syncs the sound perfectly to the text. The company promises it will revolutionize reading, and authors like Salman Rushdie and Jay McInerney are giving it a try. But do books really need a Hollywood makeover?

The death of bookstore chain Borders begs the question: Is there still a place in the Internet-dominated market for brick-and-mortar booksellers and the value they add? Independent bookstores thinks so, and the numbers in the American Booksellers Association, believe it or not, are growing.

The tech giant kicked off an e-reader price war last summer and another may be in store. Why? The company announced Monday that it would cut its price on a new Kindle that will display ads. Will competitors follow its lead?

Oprah is on a farewell tour of sorts, what with The Oprah Winfrey Show ending its 25 year run in 2011. But those who were saddened by the thought that Jonathan Franzen's No. 1 bestseller Freedom would be her final pick for her wildly popular Book Club can breathe easier: You get at least one more.

It has been a tumultuous year for Barnes & Noble, the country's largest bookseller, and its quarterly earnings report reflects that. Total sales for the quarter were $1.9 billion, a bit less of a gain than analysts had predicted, while earnings were a net loss of $12.6 million, also worse than expected.

It will be easier than ever this holiday season to find an eBook reader with Walmart announcing that it would begin offering the Barnes & Noble Nook and the Kobo eBook readers in stores alongside the Apple iPad and Sony eBook readers. Walmart joins many other retailers such as Target and Best...