iPublish.com Selects Lightning Source and Reciprocal For Ebook Fulfillment

Posted on July 19, 2000

iPublish.com, an Internet publishing venture from Time Warner Books, has chosen Lightning Source Inc. and Reciprocal, Inc. to handle its digital fulfillment services. iPublish.com will launch in the first quarter of next year. Although the relationships will be non-exclusive, Lightning Source and Reciprocal will serve as iPublish.com's preferred and primary eBook fulfillment providers, according to Gregory Voynow, senior vice president and general manager of iPublish.com

Under the arrangement, Lightning Source will provide secure fulfillment services plus content and digital rights management for the retail channel. In addition, Lightning Source will manage content for both iPublish.com and the retail channel. Reciprocal will provide digital rights management and transaction services support. In addition, Voynow said that Lightning Source will handle digital conversion of all of iPublish original content, as well as frontlist and backlist titles from Time Warner Trade Publishing, which includes Warner Books and Little Brown and Company.

``When it came to selecting a digital fulfillment service, it turned out that the best company for the job was two companies: Reciprocal and Lightning Source. Together, they proved to have the technology and the expertise to give us the extra edge we wanted,'' said Voynow. ``We are committed to distributing our books to wherever eBook readers are and this is an incredible start,'' he added.

According to Voynow, iPublish.com will be unveiling its first list of new titles this September, which will be distributed via online retailers. In the coming months, iPublish.com will also be announcing content acquisitions and distribution and promotion partnerships with eBook software companies, device makers, and online retailers. iPublish.com has already announced partnerships with Microsoft Reader and Gemstar's Rocket e-books.