FRANKFURT, Oct. 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Baker & Taylor, Inc., the world's largest distributor of physical and digital books and entertainment products, today at Frankfurt Book Fair announced a partnership to provide digital media content for K-NFB Reading Technology, Inc.'s e-reader.
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In its latest in a series of digital media partnerships, Baker & Taylor will acquire and distribute digital media for the soon-to-be-released e-reader, which delivers the most advanced, flexible and open reading platform technology developed to date. K-NFB Reading Technology is a joint venture between Kurzweil Technologies Inc., an innovator and pioneer in reading technologies and the creator of the first print-to-speech reading machine for the blind, and the National Federation for the Blind, the largest, most influential membership organization of blind people in the United States.
"Our partnership with K-NFB Reading Technology is an exciting development in our strategy to work with best-in-breed digital media innovators to deliver the content that our customers and their end-users want, the way they want it," said Tom Morgan, Chairman and CEO of Baker & Taylor. "K-NFB Reading Technology's creative approach is second to none, and its new e-reader will certainly make waves in the industry. We're thrilled to help make that happen."
The partnership is Baker & Taylor's latest step in bringing comprehensive digital media services to multiple channels and to a wide variety of end users, solidifying its position as the premier source for physical and digital media distribution.
"We are excited to be working with Baker & Taylor, the market leader in book distribution," said Ray Kurzweil, CEO of K-NFB Reading Technology. "For every technology, there comes a tipping point when adoption starts to spread like wildfire. For digital books, that time is now. With Baker & Taylor's market leadership along with our cutting-edge 3-D book technology - and our combined and rapidly growing repository of online books from leading publishers - we believe we have the key to transform the book industry."
K-NFB Reading Technology's new e-reader will operate seamlessly on a variety of electronic devices, including personal computers, smart phones and cell phones. More information on the e-reader will soon be available at www.knfbreader.com.
Publishing partners already excited by Baker & Taylor's e-book initiatives are looking forward to its pairing with K-NFB Reading Technology. "Elsevier's Science & Technology Books is proud to be an early partner in Baker & Taylor's new e-book initiative. We find it to be an innovative, flexible and exciting new approach to e-books -- one that we believe meets the varying needs of our customers," said Amy Pedersen, Vice President, Marketing for Elsevier Science & Technology Books.
Publishers interested in distributing digital content via Baker & Taylor should e-mail econtent@baker-taylor.com.
About Baker & Taylor
Baker & Taylor, Inc. (www.baker-taylor.com) is a global information and entertainment services company that offers print and digital books and entertainment products along with value-added services to libraries, educational institutions and retailers. Based in Charlotte, N.C., the company has been in existence for more than 180 years, developing long-term relationships with major suppliers, including book publishers, movie studios and music labels. Baker & Taylor maintains one of the largest combined in-stock book, video and music inventories in the United States, and services the broadest customer base in the industry. Baker & Taylor is majority owned by Castle Harlan Partners IV, L.P., an institutional private equity fund managed by Castle Harlan Inc., a leading private equity investment firm.
About K-NFB Reading Technology, Inc.
K-NFB Reading Technology, Inc. is a joint venture between Kurzweil Technologies, headed by CEO Ray Kurzweil, a 30-year innovator and pioneer in assistive technologies and the inventor of the first print-to-speech reading machine for the blind; and the National Federation of the Blind, the largest, most influential membership organization of blind people in the United States.
SOURCE Baker & Taylor, Inc.
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