Amazon pushes for e-book enhancements

Amazon wants publishers to take their e-book efforts to the next level.

The online giant has just released a bunch of new Kindle goodies, for developers, that will allow those with the ambition and savvy to create much more dynamic and exciting e-books than ever before.

“Through the use of HTML5 and CSS3, KF8 allows publishers to create great-looking books in all categories, particularly those that require rich formatting and design, such as technical & engineering books and cookbooks,” Amazon said in a statement.

The idea is that if you buy a graphic novel, the pictures can jump out at you, or if you’re reading a “Cooking for Dummies” book you can get more information about each ingredient and easily define recipe terms.

These new books are obviously designed for the Kindle Fire audience, as well as other color-screen Android devices.

It shows a stark contrast to where Amazon was when it first introduced the Kindle. At that time it wanted to be as true to the original content of the published work as possible. There was no room for apps or videos; it was all about reading.

But like all of Amazon’s other digital channels, e-books are expanding at a huge clip. The Kindle Fire exists for one purpose – to get users to buy digital content on Amazon. Whether it’s a TV show, a movie, an MP3, or a book, Kindle Fire owners are widely encouraged to grab new content through the device’s content-heavy interface.

The new Kindle book format tools are grouped into a new e-book format called KF8, which stands for Kindle Format 8. No word yet on any publishers who may be on board with the new format.