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Nook eBook Reader Ups Ante

Barnes & Noble just announced their Nook eBook reader, which should be available next month in time for Christmas. Priced at $259 just like the Amazon Kindle it adds a few features. It also could be a sign of things to come in the smartphone world.

The Kindle uses the Sprint phone network to allow you to go to Amazon and buy books. The Nook uses AT&T's GSM network and ads WiFi so you can get online when in an area that has no cellular coverage.

B&N also added the ability to share ebooks with friends using the B&N reader format. That means iPhone, Blackberry, Windows and other Nook clients can share books. When you share a book, you cannot read it. It simulates what would happen if you lent a dead tree book to a friend. The only difference is after the loan time expires, usually 14 days or less, you automatically get the book back.

The Nook is also aware of when you are in a B&N store. Special offers, discounts and content will pop up on the device when you are in the store. I've not been a big fan of location based content as it is usually poorly executed, but B&N may have it right.

Location based advertising could be a way to subsidize phone bills, generate extra revenue for the carriers or both. It will have to be done in an unobtrusive way though and be very likely to interest you. I'll be curious to see if advertisers can expand the B&N model to more generic devices like smartphones that will make the extra content as useful as the Nook extras seem to be.

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