Simon and Schuster to Distribute ibooks, inc

Posted on September 14, 1999

ibooks, inc., a new publishing imprint, has announced a September launch. The imprint, which will feature works by bestselling authors Arthur C. Clarke, Irving Wallace, Howard Fast, and Raymond Chandler, will debut in September in the U.S. through Simon and Schuster Distribution and subsequently by Simon and Schuster UK and Simon and Schuster Australia. The website www.ibooksinc.com will launch officially on September 15, l999.

"We are determined to bring important American authors of the 20th century online and in print using technological innovations available to us today," stated Byron Preiss, President. "The Internet helps us preserve the past and explore the future of publishing."

Jack Romanos, President and C.O.O. of Simon and Schuster, stated, "Byron has been an innovator in publishing and begins this new imprint with the strong roots of best-selling authors. We are very excited about our association with ibooks."

The books will concentrate on revival of 20th century authors and provocative frontlist titles whose content makes them appropriate for special marketing on the Internet. The first new title is Are We Alone in the Universe?, a trade paperback featuring the Seti@home.com search for extraterrestrial intelligence, which has logged over 1,000,000 users since its launch in June to unite Earth's personal computers in the scientific search for radio signals from alien life.

ibooks will launch in September with the first trade paperback edition of The Deceivers, a work by the late Alfred Bester, whose earlier reissues were best-sellers for Vintage Books; and Arthur C. Clarke and Paul Preuss' best-selling series, Venus Prime. In October, it will publish a newly expanded edition of Raymond Chandler's Philip Marlowe, featuring work by Robert B. Parker, Sara Paretsky, and Roger L. Simon and over a dozen other mystery authors. The second phase of ibooks' evolution will focus on the portability of electronic versions of its books on laptops, and PDA environments such as Windows CE.