reading

Google’s latest app, Rivet, uses speech processing to help kids learn to read

Rivet, a new app from Google’s in-house incubator, wants to help children struggling to read. The app hails from Area 120 — Google’s workshop for experimental projects — and in

Apple to close Texture on May 28, following launch of Apple News+

A year ago, Apple acquired the digital newsstand app Texture to form the basis of its new subscription-based service, Apple News+, which launched on Monday. As some have expected, the standalone Textu

Google introduces educational app Bolo to improve children’s literacy in India

Google is expanding its suite of apps designed for the Indian market with today’s launch of a new language-learning app aimed at children, called Bolo. The app, which is aimed at elementary scho

Wattpad launches a new program offering paid access to exclusive stories

Steve Jobs famously once said that people don’t read anymore, but it turns out younger people are, in fact, reading quite a lot — just in different ways than expected. Case in point: 70 mi

Pocket’s reading app won’t sound so robotic now

Last year, Mozilla made its first acquisition by snatching up Pocket, the Instapaper competitor that helps you save longer articles for later reading. Today, this popular reading app is getting a majo

Apple’s iBooks revamp, Apple Books, is here

Apple’s new and improved iBooks app, now called Apple Books, has popped up on iPhones across the world today with the release of iOS 12, the software update available to download as of this mor

Amazon’s children’s book subscription ‘Prime Book Box’ opens to all in the U.S.

Amazon today publicly launched a new perk for Prime members with young children, with the broad release of the new subscription-based “Prime Book Box” service. The $22.99 per box offering

Inky’s book recommendation app helps you find new reads

Amazon acquired social reading service Goodreads five years ago, squelching the life out of the competitive landscape, as minimal as it was. So it’s promising to see a new app appear with the g

The NYT adds a personalized ‘news feed’ to its iOS app

The New York Times announced on Friday how it’s adding its own take on Facebook-style News Feed to its mobile app. Yes, literally a news feed. The publication says it will now allow its iOS app

Attack of the clones

Lego – or LEGO – is expensive and kids – my kids in particular – want a lot of it. Our basement looks like the returns department of a major toy store, covered from corner to c

Storytelling app Wattpad raises $51M at a $398M valuation

Content, as they say, is king — but these days, that may be true only for as long as you can figure out a good business model to deliver it. And today, a startup based out of Toronto, Canada is

Wattpad takes ‘chat fiction’ beyond text with launch of Tap Originals

Chat fiction apps are among some of the most popular in the App Store, thanks to their highly engaged, largely teenage to young adult fan base who enjoy reading thrilling stories told in the form of t

Amazon’s chat fiction app Rapids ties up with Amazon Studios with launch of ‘Signature Stories’

Today’s kids aren’t just reading books. They’re also tapping and playing with interactive stories on tablets as preschoolers, then delving into instant messaging-like chat fiction ap

Korean e-book service Ridibooks scores $20M Series C

E-book sales may be declining in the U.S. and U.K., but in South Korea, many people still enjoy swiping instead of leafing through their reading material. E-book sales there are growing steadily each

Nickelodeon gets into e-books with new reading app for kids, Nick Jr. Books

Kids TV network Nickelodeon already has solid footing in the digital space with its lineup of over 40 preschool apps and games and its own streaming service, Noggin. Now, the entertainment brand is ma

Google Books will now make better suggestions on what to read next

Google today is launching a new feature for Google Books which aims to offer a better challenge to Amazon’s Kindle app when it comes to helping you find new things to read. Called “Discov

Amazon Debuts A $99 Kindle Bundle For Kids Including An E-Reader, Cover And Warranty

Amazon wants parents to buy Kindles for their children and is today launching a discounted “Kindle for Kids Bundle” to encourage them to do so. This new package includes the combination of

Mobile Devices Can Dramatically Improve Literacy Rates In Developing Countries, Says UNESCO

A new report by UNESCO says that mobile devices can boost literacy rates in developing countries, potentially reaching almost all of the world's population. Furthermore, an expensive tablet or smartph

FarFaria Brings Hundreds Of Children’s Books To Android

<a target="_blank" href="http://www.farfaria.com/">FarFaria</a>, the children's subscription-based e-book service which recently raised <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2014/02/04/farfaria-series-a/">$

Zoobean Debuts A Recommendation Service For Children’s Apps And Books

Zoobean, one of many startups to experiment with the “Netflix for kids’ books” business model – meaning, a subscription-based children’s books service where new books arr
Load More