If you follow tablet, smart phone, or eReader news at this year's CES, one name you'll notice popping up over and over again is Copia. Several companies, including Motorola, Microsoft and Samsung, will feature this social eReading app on smart phones and tablets. Plus, the company has a few surprises for later in the week.
What's so special about this service? Copia touts their product as the first social eReading platform. While Amazon and Barnes & Noble might disagree, Copia goes beyond what the Kindle and Nook Color offer in terms of sharing what you're reading with friends. In the Copia platform you can not only share snippets, but also notes/annotations, and highlights throughout the book. Friends within your circle can not only see your notes, but comment on them, too, creating a conversation about the book inside the book.
Last year Copia had hoped to provide both the hardware and the software consumers would use to access the platform. But the open beta failed to launch in the summer, and by fall the company had abandoned plans to sell their own eReaders. Instead, they launched just the software and apps in November, allowing users to access the service from many different kinds of devices.
This week we'll see several product announcements that include the Copia app. Motorola will feature it on the Droid X, Microsoft will utilize the platform when they show off their Windows 7 tablet, and the Samsung Galaxy Tab will also rock the app. (Which Tab? You'll have to wait and see.)
You don't have to wait for These devices to try Copia for yourself. It's available now for PC, Mac, Android and the iPad. Head over to TheCopia.com to download he desktop software.
