FRANKFURT — Google Inc. is launching an online service that will let readers buy electronic versions of books and read them on such gadgets as cellphones, laptops and possibly e-book devices.
The company said Google Editions marks its first effort to earn revenue from its Google Books scanning project, which attempts to make millions of printed books available online.
The scanning program has faced complaints from authors and publishers over copyright, but Google Editions will cover only books submitted and approved by the copyright holders when it begins next year.
It is part of an ambitious plan that Google first publicly discussed several months ago at a book conference in New York.
By the time Google Editions makes its debut, the Internet search leader hopes to have an even larger selection of digital books available as part of a legal settlement with authors and publishers. The year-old settlement still requires U.S. court approval and is being revised to address the Justice Department’s worries that the arrangement could be abused to drive up the prices for electronic books.
The books bought through Google Editions will be accessible on any device that has a Web browser, including smart phones, netbooks and personal computers and laptops.
Consumers can buy from Google, an online bookseller or another retail partner using the Google Editions platform. Google will host the e-books and make them searchable.
Google expects the program to start with 400,000 to 600,000 books in the first half of 2010.
