Borders today announced the launch of the Borders eBook store, saying it intends on securing a 17 percent share of the eBook market by July 2011.
The new store launches with more than 1.5 million titles, according to a press release. The eBooks come in formats including ePub, mobile and PDF. The store launch follows the introduction of the Borders iPhone and iPad apps, powered by Kobo, as well as the introduction of the Kobo eReader and Aluratek Libre eReader. The Kobo sells for $150 and the Aluratek goes for $120.
“The race to emerge as a retail leader within the digital category is just starting,” said Mike Edwards, CEO for Borders, in a statement. “During the past several months, we’ve been carefully crafting a digital strategy, one that has great content and a device neutral philosophy backed by the Borders brand as its cornerstones. We believe we are very well positioned to come out strong and to ultimately claim about a 17 percent eBook market share by this time next year.”
Borders enters the ring with eBook heavyweights Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com, which also offer eBook stores in conjunction with the Nook and Kindle eReader devices, respectively.
On June 21, Barnes & Noble slashed the price of the Nook from $279 to $199 and released a Wi-Fi only version of the device that sells for $150. Amazon almost immediately followed suit, cutting the price of the Kindle from $259 to $189.
The latest price war amongst eReader manufacturers is seen as a response to the burgeoning tablet market led by Apple and the iPad. Interestingly, the Borders store addresses the iPad directly, with a category of titles called “Can’t Get These in iBooks,” which includes novels from authors like Dean Koontz, Tami Hoag and Jeannie Holmes. iBooks is Apple’s iTunes-linked eBook store, which recently launched in conjunction with iOS 4 and the new iPhone 4.
