Lycos and Random House Launch Ebook Marketplace

Posted on November 10, 2000

Terra Lycos S.A.,, an Internet network, has announced that the Lycos Network launched a new ebooks marketplace with Random House Inc., a division of Bertelsmann, AG. Modern Library, a Random House Trade Group imprint offering both old and new classics, provides the first offering in the new marketplace, located inside Lycos Shop and in Lycos Entertainment. Random House recently launched this ebook classics distribution program with Reciprocal and has been teaming with other websites to sell the ebooks.

``Terra Lycos has embraced digital distribution of copyrighted content with their early moves in the music space, and represents an attractive partner for our move into online delivery of literature,'' said Richard Sarnoff, president of the New Media and Corporate Development Group for Random House, Inc. ``As we expand our distribution channels for ebooks, Random House looks forward to working with Terra Lycos market to both general and specific audiences aggregated on its sites.''

Through the agreement, Lycos Shop offers works of classic literature from Modern Library's bound book backlist in electronic form. Some of the authors represented include Jane Austen, James Joyce, Charles Dickens, Marcel Proust, Henry James and Willa Cather. New ebook editions will feature introductions by familiar writers and personalities, updated text and other highlights which distinguish the new ebook titles from their earlier printed versions. The Modern Library collection will be available in Adobe (.pdf), Glassbook Reader (.pdf) and Microsoft Reader (.lit) formats.