The idea is that people pay a monthly amount to watch movies on Netflix, so maybe they'll pay a monthly amount to read ebooks from, among other publishers, HarperCollins.
Scribd announced last week that HarperCollins is the first of the five major publishers to make a deal with them, and they're negotiating with the other four. From the LA Times Article:
How it works: Scribd will charge $8.99 a month for the service, which will offer unlimited access to titles published before July 2012. It will also offer books from smaller publishers.
HarperCollins and authors will get a cut of each book read. It's not clear whether the monthly fees will be enough to make up for lower sales of printed books.
Would you sign up? Is this a "good thing" for authors and illustrators?
It will be fascinating to see what happens as our industry moves into the future!
Illustrate and Write On,
Lee
