I flew across the country this Sunday to attend a conference, on Virgin America. It’s my second flight on VA, and I largely enjoy it, at least as well as JetBlue.

But looking at their “Red” in-flight entertainment system today, with a menu button marked “Read” along with Music and Games and Chat and other cool functions (alas, the [Read] button was inactive, with a “coming soon” message); along with a WEP-protected wireless network labeled “VAsecret1″ … what if an airline partnered with Amazon, or with Google Books? (Or any other ebook store). Trapped in a long tin tube, the advantages of inflight reading are significant, as anyone who has ever bought a book clumsily onboard already overstuffed luggage can attest — and how much the better if I was able to actually browse a store (or a library!) and then order content or rent access online. Or, if I could identify myself and then gain access to my own accumulated e-library, even more awesome.

It seems to me that this is one of the core assets of ebooks — they make reading more pervasive, in a way that it has always strived to be, first with books, and then paperback books. A progression of the same, but with enhanced flexibility.

There is nothing to stop this vision from happening, and it has many advantages, so it must, one think, come to pass.

Posted: 12|9|07 at 7:57 pm. Filed under: Digital Libraries, eBooks, Publishing. New here? Follow this entry via RSS 2.0. Comments and pings are currently closed.