No, it’s not crazy; or at least, I should say, I’ve done it. I spent many hours during business travel using my t-Mobile PDA phone as an ebook reader, compatible with the Microsoft Reader format. It worked for me then (several years ago), and might still be convenient now. And that’s even despite the fact that I also own a Kindle.
That comes up because a Canadian company is introducing a digital book application that makes e-book readers out of smart phones. And the iPhone (hooray) is first.
As several providers rush into the e-book reader market, a Canadian company is preparing to take advantage of a huge population of stealth e-book readers — smartphones — and launch its Shortcovers service, which lets consumers read books on their handsets.
The digital book platform has been tested for Apple’s iPhone, according to people who have seen the service. Shortcovers is a division of Indigo Books & Music, which operates a Canadian nationwide chain of bookstores.
I like to post about ebooks and related new things on this blog because I think this is a market that has a lot of future to it. Or maybe it’s just me, that I like this technology.
Tim Berry is the founder and chairman of Palo Alto Software and Bplans.com. Follow him on Twitter @Timberry.
