Apple on Thursday introduced iBooks Author, a new application that allows users to create eBooks using Apple’s editing tools, reports Mashable and Huffington Post.

The free app will enable authors to easily create their own e-books using software available on the iTunes store.

However, much controversy has also risen concerning its dubious terms and agreement over copyright issues.

The clause is spelled out in the license agreement below:

“IMPORTANT NOTE: If you charge a fee for any book or other work you generate using this software (a “Work”), you may only sell or distribute such Work through Apple (e.g., through the iBookstore) and such distribution will be subject to a separate agreement with Apple.”

In layman terms, the clause states that the user agrees that any original books created with it be sold only in Apple's iBookstore and also implies that Apple gets a cut from profits.

Dan Wineman of Venomous Porridge has compared Apple's iBookstore requirement to Microsoft's attempt to restrict where people can sell documents created on Word.

As the software enters the marketplace, it remains to be seen whether contract breaching will occur and if can it be made enforceable in court.

It appears that iBooks Author will not so much revolutionize the world of e-textbooks and publishing but instead, signify an extension of Apple's covert control over creative content.

[via Mashable] image via Daylife]


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