Scribd’s new iPaper vs. PDF

3

By David Rothman

Scribd, whose documents exchange site infuriated some members of the SFWA over copyright issues, has just released a platform and documents viewer.

Boosters are hailing iPaper as a possible PDF killer, although I’m not joining the celebration. Click on the image for better view.

Pros of iPaper: Slick graphics and embedding capabilities, so that an e-book can really look inviting and easy to get into. You could even stream e-books, so to speak, and let the pages automatically move ahead. Promising for product info brochures.

Cons: Could help the unscrupulous turn e-books into billboards—mere ad platforms. We’re not talking about a restrained Wowio-style approach. What’s more, ironically enough Scribd relies on Adobe-developed Flash. Yes, other issues arise, too, such as searchability compared to alternatives.

Question: Will the intellectual property hawks at Apple take offense at the term iPaper, especially if a new Apple e-reader is on the way? Perhaps not. A quick search shows the trademark is now in the hands of a paper-related chemical company (no threat because of the different usage), although Adobe formerly owned it. But wait. A Swiss company uses the term to describe “interactive paper.” Different enough not to be a problem?

Related: Items at Webware and Digg.

3

 Print Friendly