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Apple Inc. is expected Thursday to unveil a new digital-textbook service at a 10 a.m. event in New York.

The announcement is expected to focus on tools for building digital textbooks, people familiar with the matter have said, as Apple aims to spur the creation of content tailored to iPads. The Cupertino, Calif., company is expected to target a broad range of schools and publishers with the offering.

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs had long complained about the grip that incumbent educational publishers had on learning. He argued that the system could be improved by developing cheaper education materials.

It is unclear how Apple's user-generated textbook push would go over with traditional textbook publishers, some of whom might also be part of Thursday's announcement. Some of those publishers are working with technology companies like Inkling and Kno Inc. to offer digital textbooks with interactive features for iPads and other devices. On Wednesday, online textbook rental service Chegg announced its entry.

Apple's existing education offerings—such as its iTunes U educational podcast service—have been niche. But its iBooks platform, which already contains a small number of textbooks, could help it gain scale—if more schools are willing to buy Apple devices. While some school districts are adopting iPads, Apple has a long way to go to make them ubiquitous in classrooms.
Via FOX news

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