Baker & Taylor's Axis 360 in Pilot with Simon & Schuster to Make eBook Titles Available to School Customers

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Dec. 9, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Baker & Taylor, the world's largest distributor of digital and physical books and entertainment products, announced today that through a pilot program it will now be able to make available more than 450 popular ebook titles from Simon & Schuster imprints to classrooms and school libraries using the Axis 360 digital media circulation platform.

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The pilot allows Baker & Taylor's K-12 customers to purchase access to many popular, classic and award-winning Simon & Schuster ebooks for school-aged readers. Simon & Schuster titles are now available from Baker & Taylor via Title Source 360, the company's new, comprehensive collection development and ordering tool for library and educational customers.

"Even more than their parents, young readers are very comfortable with digital content, so the addition of children's and teens' ebooks from such a large and influential publisher as Simon & Schuster is a welcome development in our industry," said George Coe, President of Baker & Taylor's Library & Education division. "Children now have more ways to discover books that engage their minds, and can do so on platforms that are familiar and easy to use."

Some of the titles included in the pilot are Click, Clack, Moo: Cows that Type by Doreen Cronin and illustrated by Betsy Lewin, Hatchet by Gary Paulsen, Forge by Laurie Halse Anderson, Out of My Mind by Sharon M. Draper, Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, Angela's Ashes by Frank McCourt and For Whom the Bell Tolls by Ernest Hemingway.

Axis 360 gives students the ability to easily borrow and read ebooks in electronic formats that are directly downloaded to computers and mobile devices. Axis 360 works with PCs and Macintosh computers as well as mobile Apple iOS and Android devices, including smartphones and tablets. eBooks on Axis 360 are also available for use with the Blio ereader, the multi-function reading application which includes embedded tools such as notetaking and highlighting, online reference source linking, font controls and read-aloud functionality. Blio also offers accessibility features, making it the best available ebook reading experience for students with reading disabilities or sight impairment. In addition to ebooks, Axis 360 also offers digital audiobooks for student borrowing.

About Baker & Taylor
Baker & Taylor, Inc. is the world's largest distributor of books, digital content and entertainment products. The company offers cutting-edge digital media services and innovative technology platforms to thousands of publishers, libraries and retailers worldwide. Baker & Taylor also offers industry-leading customized library services and retail merchandising solutions. Charlotte, N.C.-based Baker & Taylor is majority owned by Castle Harlan Partners IV, L.P., an institutional private equity fund managed by Castle Harlan, Inc., a leading private equity investment firm.

SOURCE Baker & Taylor, Inc.