Brazil's surprise

In Brazil, you'll need a dance card to keep track of the contestants. In the ebook world, Kobo, Google and Amazon opened their virtual doors in December 2012. The opposition, one would think, would be Saraiva, and digital distributor Xeriph. But seven of the largest publishers had banded together in April 2012 -- in anticipation of Amazon's arrival -- to create Distribuidora de Livros Digitais (DLD). According to Publishing Perspectives: "It looks like the DLD gamble has paid off. According to research by PublishNews Brazil’s Carlo Carrenho presented last week at the Digital Minds Conference during the London Book Fair, sales through DLD — which is believed to account for about 30% of ebook market in Brazil — more than doubled, reaching 39,210 ebooks in December."