Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Microsoft Plans To Add an Ebook Store To Windows 10 (mspoweruser.com)

Posted by msmash on from the for-bookworms dept.

Microsoft may have plans to give Windows 10 users the ability to purchase ebooks directly from the Windows Store. According to a report on MSPowerUser, Windows 10 Creators Update will feature a new book store interface that will support the purchase and viewing of books in the Microsoft Edge browser. The report claims that this feature will be coming to both Windows 10 Mobile and other Windows 10 variants on PCs and tablets. It's worth mentioning that Microsoft made EPUB support a feature of Microsoft Edge as part of its Windows 10 Creators Update Insider test builds last year.

68 comments

  1. Years late, millions short by tripleevenfall · · Score: 5, Funny

    Yet another soon-to-be short-lived MS attempt to be 5th or 6th to market with someone else's idea.

    1. Re:Years late, millions short by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Somewhere, deep within Microsoft, there are people whose job security rests on their coming up with yet another way to have Microsoft extend its control over everything you can do on your computer. Want to bet that the DRM on the e-books you buy will depend on there being an active network connection so that the reader can connect to a Microsoft license server to check whether you're allowed to open the book? And that the DRM will be cracked within 48 hours of its implementation?

    2. Re: Years late, millions short by ArmoredDragon · · Score: 1

      You also forgot: You'll have to upgrade to a Kaby Lake based CPU and have a video card and monitor that support hdcp 2.2, and when windows 11 comes out you'll have to upgrade or else it will quit working.

    3. Re: Years late, millions short by davester666 · · Score: 1

      New error message: "You cannot view this ebook on your display because it does not support HDCP 3.7. Please connect a display that supports HDCP 3.7 or later and no other displays to your computer and try again."

      --
      Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
  2. Did you know by rossdee · · Score: 3, Interesting

    that there is a Kindle for PC that lets you read wBooks purchased from Amazon

    or soesn't it work on Win 10

    BTW I can also read books from the Kindle store on my phone and Fire Tablets

    1. Re:Did you know by unixisc · · Score: 1

      That's what I do: I don't want to buy books that are only good as long as I have a certain platform

    2. Re:Did you know by Jason+Levine · · Score: 3, Informative

      Many libraries will also lend out Kindle versions of books. (They automatically expire and then can't be opened when due.) As an author, I love the Kindle platform. I make more money on the sale of a Kindle book than I do on the sale of a paperback. If Microsoft wants to even put a dent in Amazon's eBook empire, they're going to need cross-compatibility and a ton of titles to attract users and good royalty payment structures for authors. If their eBook store doesn't offer authors enough of a cut of sales, we'll all stick with Amazon. If not enough books are available, users won't use the service. If there aren't enough users, authors/publishing companies won't bother releasing their books on Microsoft's platform.

      Side note: I liked that Amazon gave me the choice of whether to include DRM or not. (I didn't include it.) Somehow, I can't see Microsoft's eBook story NOT forcing DRM on all of the eBooks.

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    3. Re:Did you know by Jason+Levine · · Score: 1

      s/eBook story/eBook store/g

      I wish there was an edit function to correct these minor typos.

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    4. Re:Did you know by taxman_10m · · Score: 2

      Microsoft used to have the Reader I think it was called. The books were in the .lit format.

    5. Re:Did you know by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Amazon IS "a certain platform". I prefer my ebooks in DRM free epub (or other formats with pdf being least prefered). I can get multiple epub readers for just about any technology platform. I can convert epub to other formats and other formats to epub (with varying degrees of success depending on how consistently the original is formatted. I can load a DRM free epub on my old eInk reader, or into google play books, kindle, kobo, nook reader software on about any tech platform. Kindle books require the kindle reader and amazon retains the power to kill any purchase you have made.

    6. Re: Did you know by unixisc · · Score: 1

      By 'a certain platform', I meant not locked to just one of Android, iOS or Windows. Amazon is available on all 3, and Kindle is an Android platform, not something unique. If you get a book on Amazon, you can read it from any of these. I'm not sure that that's the case if you buy a Microsoft E-Book or something from iTunes

    7. Re:Did you know by stasike · · Score: 2

      Install Calibre and google for Calibre plugin made by Apprentice Alf.

      Problem with converting of DRM protected Kindle books will be solved.

    8. Re:Did you know by stasike · · Score: 2

      Microsoft used to have the Reader I think it was called. The books were in the .lit format.

      ... and they abandoned all people that "purchased" DRM protected e-books from them.

    9. Re:Did you know by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      Yeah it's shit.

      It hasn't been updated since Windows 8. My guess is Amazon and Barnes and Noble are pissed since MS started bundling their own e-book reader program. No it's not compatible with Amazon's either

      --
      http://saveie6.com/
    10. Re:Did you know by Billly+Gates · · Score: 1

      MS has a new one in Windows 10. Problem is publishers LOVE DRM and keeping their shit on the cloud to block out competitors. Amazon is one of the worst offenders unfortunately so they won't work on other platforms

      --
      http://saveie6.com/
  3. Nobody uses the app store by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    most people dont even know its there.

    1. Re:Nobody uses the app store by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Fortunately it is still on every Win10 installation and is updated frequently and is sucking up the CPU, network bandwith and providing a open, always changing attack vector.

    2. Re:Nobody uses the app store by unixisc · · Score: 1

      I use it, but only for things that I don't need to pay for. One of my favorite apps - Hyper - disappeared from the store

  4. Oh, yeah. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    And trust Mr. Nadella all the way to the bank.

    Eh -- thanks, Microsoft. But no, thanks. I've been watching your behavior for far too many years.

    (Captcha was "condom": somehow appropriate, but I'd rather prefer "ten-foot-pole", to be sure).

  5. Is this what an OS has bcome now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    A platform for selling stuff to you even though you paid handsomely for the platform in the first place?

    1. Re:Is this what an OS has bcome now? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Yes. That's why modern OS try to get your attention with useless gimmick features on every update instead of being the least obtrusive and just work like they should. It's all about selling shit by pressing a button.

  6. First and most important question by Opportunist · · Score: 4, Funny

    Will we be able to disable/uninstall it?

    --
    We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    1. Re:First and most important question by Oswald+McWeany · · Score: 1

      Yes, but it will require installing Linux first.

      --
      "That's the way to do it" - Punch
    2. Re:First and most important question by Opportunist · · Score: 1

      That's acceptable.

      --
      We used to have a Bill of Rights. Now, with the rights gone, all we have left is the bill.
    3. Re:First and most important question by KiloByte · · Score: 1

      Will we be able to disable/uninstall it?

      No, but it will be able to uninstall ebooks you own. Although, as usual, this innovation has been copied by Microsoft from others, in this case, from Amazon dropping YOUR copies of "1984" down the memory hole.

      And when a book becomes only partially ungood, the technology will kindly destroy and replace the copy your own, instead of ordering you to cut out a page from your Great Soviet Encyclopedia and mailing a replacement sheet you're supposed to glue in, with random visits to the encyclopedia's subscribers to check compliance (Orwell wasn't the one to invent this either).

      --
      The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
  7. Waiting for Windows, OS Edition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You know, for people who need an operating system, not a hawker and a snitch.

    1. Re:Waiting for Windows, OS Edition by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Huh. I always thought of Windows as of an NOS, i.e. a "Non Operating System". Perceptions differ, mind you...

  8. Suck my... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    ...dick Microsoft! I'm tired of sucking yours...

    1. Re:Suck my... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Sucky sucky Sunshine, I'm not finished yet!

  9. a brief timeline for this innovation by nimbius · · Score: 5, Funny

    2009: Amazon releases kindle and an entire bookstore.
    2010: Google digitizes and operates the largest e-book store on the planet.
    2017: Microsoft gets excited about this new e-book technology its been hearing so much about and immediately declares it will offer a bookstore that only works with Microsoft products.

    --
    Good people go to bed earlier.
    1. Re:a brief timeline for this innovation by __aaclcg7560 · · Score: 2

      2006: Sony releases the Sony Reader for $600 USD.

      I had a six-week contract to QA ebook titles on the Japanese hardware in the Summer 2005. Linux developers were in Japan, ebook conversion to HTML were in India, and my team of ten testers speed read 600 ebook titles for HTML issues in Silicon Valley. The Sony tax for having the Sony brand name prevented the device from being adopted widespread. Sony discontinued the device in 2014.

      Although Sony no longer appears on my resume, I still get contacted by recruiters for jobs that require speaking fluent Japanese. I've worked for Japanese companies well enough to understand culture, and cleaned up Japan-to-English translations as a video game tester. I had to explain to a hiring manager who called from Tokyo that working at a Japanese companies doesn't mean I know how to speak fluent Japanese.

    2. Re:a brief timeline for this innovation by Jason+Levine · · Score: 1

      The first Kindle was actually released in 2007. (Source)

      Microsoft is almost 10 years late to the party.

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    3. Re:a brief timeline for this innovation by ausekilis · · Score: 1

      That's actually early for them. MS considers it "fashionably late".

    4. Re:a brief timeline for this innovation by Wdomburg · · Score: 2

      2000: Microsoft releases Pocket PC 2000 Phone Edition
      2001: Nokia releases the Symbian based S60 software platform
      2002: Blackberry releases the Blackberry 5810 smart phone
      2007: Apple gets excited about this new Smartphone technology its been hearing so much about

  10. they killed lit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2

    Would NEVER trust MS with any of my media after they killed LIT and all the tens of billions of .lit ebooks out there.

    1. Re:they killed lit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Insightful

      This. I bought a lot of ebooks in Microsoft Reader format back in the day, to read on my Pocket PC/Windows Mobile devices. Of course one day Microsoft decided it was bored with Microsoft Reader, and dropped it. So when that generation of devices became obsolete, your whole library became useless (unless you made the effort to decrypt the ebooks and convert them to another format, which was doable, but obviously a PITA). So now I'm going to buy ebooks that I'm guessing can only be accessed on a device with Microsoft's store, and signed in to the same Microsoft account? Not making that mistake again.

    2. Re:they killed lit by PingSpike · · Score: 1

      Maybe it just needs a new branding initiative to instill trust in the ecosystem. Maybe something like, ReadForSure. That way you know you'll always be able to read your books for sure because they said so this time.

  11. Windows is my tool by hoggoth · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Windows is my tool. I use it to work. I don't want a damn eBook store or ads on my desktop or a touch interface that I can't touch at my desktop. It's like someone put a f**ing little LCD screen in the head of my hammer that shows me ads while I pound nails.

    --
    - For the complete works of Shakespeare: cat /dev/random (may take some time)
    1. Re:Windows is my tool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Saaaay... that gives me an idea....

    2. Re:Windows is my tool by ausekilis · · Score: 1

      Windows Hammer (tm): "It looks like you're trying to hammer a nail. Would you like me to help?"

    3. Re:Windows is my tool by easyTree · · Score: 1

      Please don't hit a nail - your hammer is updating...

      --
      Requiem for the American Dream
    4. Re: Windows is my tool by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Well, maybe you shouldn't be using a toy as a tool. But what do I know, I'm killing flies with a shotgun.

    5. Re: Windows is my tool by hoggoth · · Score: 1

      > you shouldn't be using a toy as a tool

      Thanks. Great advice. You're very helpful, maybe you should seek a career as a Bastard-Operator-From-Hell. I am required to use Windows to run one piece of (bad) software that is only available on Windows.

      --
      - For the complete works of Shakespeare: cat /dev/random (may take some time)
    6. Re:Windows is my tool by unixisc · · Score: 1

      If the only tool you have is a hammer....

    7. Re:Windows is my tool by KiloByte · · Score: 1

      More like: "It looks like you're trying to repair a watch. Would you like me to hammer it?".

      --
      The creatures outside looked from Alt-Right to Antifa; but already it was impossible to say which was which.
    8. Re:Windows is my tool by Gravis+Zero · · Score: 1

      Windows is my tool. I use it to work. I don't want...

      What is it about Windows that makes you think anything about Windows belongs to you? For all the abuse Microsoft has given you, you decided "well it's not all bad" and kept using their platform of abuse. You belong to Microsoft.

      --
      Anons need not reply. Questions end with a question mark.
  12. where's the focus? by smithcl8 · · Score: 2

    MS needs to focus on what they are good at and spend the R&D time to develop the "next great thing". They have been late to so many tech trends over the past decade and need to create their own, instead of trying to skim a few dollars from established markets.

    1. Re:where's the focus? by gtall · · Score: 1

      I give up, what is it that MS is good at?

    2. Re: where's the focus? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Building a crappy, cheap ass OS that runs fast on lowend hardware, sacrificing all possible stability, security, standard compliance and portability to do so? I don't think this is necessary nowadays.

  13. cross platform books & music by unixisc · · Score: 1

    Not just that, I've also avoided buying anything from either Apple's or Google's stores. Point is - if I want something, I'd rather have it anywhere I choose. All my books are from Amazon, so that I can read it from either my iPad or my Ellipsis. Years ago, I bought some songs from iTunes, but if I have to do so today, I'd use Vevo. Not that I do: I download music videos from YouTube and have created a library of my own songs that I can seamlessly play on either my Ellipsis or my Lumia. Unfortunately, I can't put it on my iPad - the video player there just doesn't recognize it, even if I use iTunes.

    1. Re:cross platform books & music by MightyMartian · · Score: 2

      I buy plenty of books from Google's store. The first thing I do is decrypt them so I can read them in FBReader. Both Google's and Kobo's store use the Adobe DRM, so it's pretty trivial to decrypt.

      --
      The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
    2. Re:cross platform books & music by Jason+Levine · · Score: 1

      I bought music from Google once. They required that I use their app to play it online. I could download it in MP3 format, but I was only allowed to do so a certain number of times. (Four, IIRC.) Contrast this with Amazon which will sell me the digital music, let me play it online or download it as many times as I like in non-DRMed MP3 format. That's why all of my music purchases (except that one described above) are from Amazon and not Google.

      --
      My sci-fi novel, Ghost Thief, is now available from Amazon.com.
    3. Re:cross platform books & music by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Streamtuner (including streamripper) is perfect for making USB dongles to play in my car - the radio reception is crap where I live.

    4. Re:cross platform books & music by rbgaynor · · Score: 1

      Years ago, I bought some songs from iTunes, but if I have to do so today, I'd use Vevo.

      I guess you're not aware that iTunes eliminated DRM on music years ago.

      --
      "Good things don't end with eum, they end with mania or teria." - H. Simpson
    5. Re:cross platform books & music by unixisc · · Score: 1

      Vevo is a lot better when it comes to music videos, which is how I get my music these days: like to watch the original videos

    6. Re:cross platform books & music by rbgaynor · · Score: 1

      Where you shop is certainly your choice to make, but since it's not about proprietary lock-in (the topic of this sub-thread), it's irrelevant to the conversation.

      --
      "Good things don't end with eum, they end with mania or teria." - H. Simpson
  14. Do I even have to point it out? by TheFakeTimCook · · Score: 1

    Redmond, Start Your Copiers!!! Again...

    True then, true now.

  15. But windows 10 is a dead spyware. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    But windows 10 is dead and is a spyware.
    Who will use it anyway?

    1. Re:But windows 10 is a dead spyware. by Alumoi · · Score: 1

      All your 'computer challenged' relatives and friends.

  16. Read for sure? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Will they call it read for sure, like their successful and trustworthy play for sure?

  17. Bookstore update! by easyTree · · Score: 1

    > Enter bookstore
    You buy a book and begin to read.

    After a while, you feel thirsty.

    What would you like to do?
    > go for a coffee.

    Mmmm, hot coffee.

    You return to your desk with the coffee.

    Your book and all your possessions near it are gone! Searching the floor nearby you find a tiny note written in invisible ink "bookstore updated!"

    Press <N> to jump into the fiery pit.
    Press <S> to jump into the fiery pit.
    Press <E> to jump into the fiery pit.
    Press <W> to jump into the fiery pit.

    What would you like to do?

    --
    Requiem for the American Dream
    1. Re: Bookstore update! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      >drop coffee into fiery pit

    2. Re: Bookstore update! by easyTree · · Score: 1

      Pit is updating. Please wait...

      --
      Requiem for the American Dream
    3. Re: Bookstore update! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Ctrl+C

    4. Re: Bookstore update! by easyTree · · Score: 1

      The fiery pit has crashed. Please contact your deity!

      --
      Requiem for the American Dream
  18. Store? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Windows 10 has a store???

  19. They have a store? by CptLoRes · · Score: 1

    Wait, what!? Windows 10 has a store?

  20. FTFY by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Microsoft Plans To Add a Failbook Store To Windows 10