ABSTRACT
This chapter is devoted to full-scale electronic and multimedia publishing and seeks to draw a distinction between publishers’ own initiatives and true licensing of content to third parties. Electronic publishing is a significant feature of the publishing industry, driven by technological and commercial developments. In 2000, the advent of the e-book was seen as a significant development that could have a considerable impact on traditional book sales – the supply of an entire book electronically for downloading to a desktop computer, laptop, handheld device or dedicated reading device. Customer demand for portability has led to the development of a wide range of devices with an ever-increasing range of facilities. Issues of territoriality are key in the digital environment and, in common with other e-book retailers, Amazon is dependent on publishers informing them of the territories they control. The e-book sector of the industry has continued to grow, and a variety of models have emerged to bring content to end-users.
