In a move that should bring substantial more money to author JK Rowling, the blockbuster ‘Harry Potter’ book series is expected to go digital for the first time ever, 14 years after the 1997 release of ‘The Sorcerer’s Stone.’
All seven of the books will soon become available via the iPad and the Kindle e-reader, and should net Rowling £100 million.
Scotsman cites Rowling’s agent as confirming the imminent deal.
Rowling has an estimated fortune nearing $1 billion USD, following the record sales of the books, the films, the DVD/Blu-rays and other merchandise.
One editor added:
Experts believe that move could revolutionize the world of electronic publishing, triggering rocket sales of e-book readers such as Kindle and the iPad.
Result for: 100 million
Opera, the company behind popular desktop and mobile browsers, has launched the Opera Mobile Store, now available in over 200 countries.
The store is available at mobilestore.opera.com or as a ‘Speed Dial’ link for users of Opera Mini or Opera Mobile on their phones.
Opera says there are over 100 million Opera Mini/Mobile users around the world.
Appia, a marketplace technology company, is delivering the app store, which has applications for Java, Symbian, BlackBerry and Android operating systems.
Says Oepra:
The launch of the Opera Mobile Store supports Opera’s core belief in an open, cross-platform mobile Internet experience by providing Opera users with an integrated storefront of mobile applications. Our partnership with Appia delivers to all Opera Mobile and Opera Mini users easy access to a wide variety of great content, on any device, all over the world.
In beta form, Opera says the Store attracted 700,000 downloads per day.
Result for: 100 million
VB has posted today that giant e-tailer Amazon is set to invest $100 million in daily-deal site LivingSocial.
The “strategic investment” talks are underway, but there is nothing set in stone.
Daily-deal sites have boomed in the past year thanks mainly to the popularity of market leaders Groupon and Living Social.
All daily-deal sites offer discounts on products, services, activities, and meals from merchants, small and large.
Amazon currently has a foundation in the deals business, as it purchased Woot earlier this year.
Living Social raised money in March and April, but more investment would lead to a larger expansion into new cities and even new countries.
Just last month, Groupon was valued at over $3 billion.
