There are many developments in the world of eBook Readers this week, from new changes in digital textbooks happening right here in Toronto at Blyth Academy, which last November became famous for being the first high school to switch to eReader devices over paper textbooks, to Amazon's release of Kindle Editions books that include video and audio content. The digital book market is clearly heating up thanks to the popularity of the Kindle, Kobo, and Sony Reader and clearly all of the major players are eager to introduce something new this fall. 

Sam Blyth, CEO of Blyth Educations is happy to report that the Sony Reader program at his schools is going along wonderfully. I spoke to him recently while doing a story for MarketNews.ca on the school's new interactive windows, and he tells me that the results of the first six months have gone very well, with students reporting an increase of recreational reading by two to three times, and that the school is now using the Reader devices to power their summer travel programs, allowing students and faculty to bring their course material with them as they travel to Europe and abroad.

Blyth tells me that he and his faculty have been pushing publishers Nelson Education and Pearson Canada to develop digital textbooks that are customized to take advantage of the Reader devices' capabilities and have already been giving prototypes of textbooks that include streaming video, online tutoring, and new, dynamic content. The plan is to introduce the new generation of textbooks into the school for new school year this September. 

This week Amazon has expanded their reach to mobile devices with the launch of a Kindle App for smsrtphones powered by Google's Android software. No Kindle required, Android users can now access the Amazon store to purchase and download their digital books (but not magazines or newspapers) and read them on their smartphones. For those with a Kindle, you can sync your content between the two devices. 

For those who use Apple's iPhone or iPad devices, Amazon has launched a new section of digital books that contains both video and audio content. Kindle Editions with audio/video are only available for use with the iPhone or iPad (not even the Kindle gets these), delivering embeddable content such as a series of walking tours in Rick Steves' London.  

Whether it will arrive through more advance reader devices or simply through apps for smartphones and netbooks, publishers and retailers are clearly eager to reimagine the concept of the electronic book quickly.