Twelve years since the launch of the first digital readers (eReaders) in 1998 and ten years after EKEBI’s first international conference on the subject (2000), the book world abroad and in Greece seems to have moved to the next phase. Now that a temporary solution has been found to the perceived threat of Google’s publishing initiative, which conflicted with US monopoly legislation, new digital platforms, both commercial and open-access, are emerging. Meanwhile in Greece, major publishing houses have already brought out their first eBooks and new distribution initiatives are being developed.
In response to the demands of the market and the need of book professionals for dialogue and up-to-date information, EKEBI has organised a New Technologies Corner at the 8th Thessaloniki Book Fair. Visitors will learn about the growing role of digital books, and their importance to booklovers and as a new medium for reading.