Smashwords Releases 100,000th Indie Ebook
Celebrates Four Year Anniversary
New York, NY – February 14, 2012 - Smashwords, the leading distributor of indie (self-published) ebooks, today announced it has released its 100,000th ebook. Smashwords first launched here at the 2008 Tools of Change conference in New York.
Four years ago, ebooks represented 1% of the U.S. book market and self-publishing was viewed as the option of last resort for failed authors,” said Mark Coker, founder of Smashwords, based in Los Gatos, Calif. “Today ebooks are approaching 30% of the market and self-publishing has become the option of first choice for thousands of authors. Indie ebook authors enjoy faster time to market, higher net royalties (85%), global distribution, greater creative control, and the ability to reach more readers – more profitably – with lower cost books.
Smashwords makes it fast, free and easy for any writer, anywhere in the world, to publish and distribute an ebook. The Smashwords distribution network includes the Apple iBookstore (32 countries), Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo and the Diesel eBook Store. Additional partners are in the pipeline.
Over 35,000 indie authors, small publishers and literary agents around the world publish and distribute ebooks with Smashwords. Smashwords has released over 8,500 ebooks in the last 30 days. As the world’s largest supplier of indie ebooks to retailers, Smashwords authors routinely outsell titles from large, traditional publishers.
Smashwords has been profitable for 18 consecutive months, employs 13, and directly contributes millions of dollars to the livelihood of writers around the world.
About Smashwords, Inc.
Privately held Smashwords operates the world’s leading ebook publishing and distribution platform serving authors, publishers, literary agents, retailers and readers. Smashwords makes it fast, free and easy for any writer, anywhere in the world, to instantly publish and distribute multi-format ebooks. Authors and publishers control pricing, retain all rights and earn 85 percent (or more) of net proceeds. Smashwords distributes to leading online retailers such as the Apple iBookstore (32 countries), Barnes & Noble, Sony, Kobo and Diesel eBooks. Smashwords is based in Los Gatos, California, and can be reached on the web at http://www.smashwords.com . Visit the official Smashwords blog at http://blog.smashwords.com/.
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