While this outcome affirmed publishers' power, it also undid the two-year exclusivity with Amazon.com for the majority of the Odyssey Editions' titles. This is great news for anyone with a Sony Reader, Barnes & Noble Nook, Borders' Kobo, or any reader for that matter.

There are bound to be more disputes between authors and publishers as e-books gain more of the publishing market. Authors clearly want to be able to keep their digital rights separate of traditional publishing; publishers clearly the opposite. As long as publishers work to keep e-books available to all sources, however, whereas authors are signing exclusive deals with one source or another, I believe publishers have the upper hand. Their model benefits the consumer more. And for the majority of unknown authors, a smaller cut of larger sales would outweigh a larger percentage with a smaller audience.

More on this topic as it comes!