Google will reportedly begin selling digital books by late June or July of this year, a company representative tells
The Wall Street Journal. In other words, life just got more complicated for Amazon, Apple, and Barnes &
Noble. Dubbed Google Editions, the new service will allow users to buy digital copies of books they discover through its book-search service, while it will allow book retailers -- including
independent shops -- to sell Google Editions on their own sites, taking the bulk of the revenue. Chris Palma, Google’s manager for strategic-partner development, just announced the
timetable at a panel on Google’s plans, although execs at the search giant have been discussing its plans to distribute books online for over a year. According to The Journal,
“The company is hoping to distinguish itself from incumbents like Amazon by allowing users to access books from a broad range of sites using multiple devices.�