Sainsbury’s is to rebrand Anobii, the ebook retailer and social network it purchased from HMV last year.
Anobii service allows readers to research titles and purchase them to read on a range of e-readers, smartphones and tablets.
In June 2012 the UK supermarket purchased HMV’s 64% stake in the site which it had retained following the sale of book retailer Waterstones.
Publishers HarperCollins, Penguin and Random House are all minority shareholders in the site,
In a posted message on the site, Sainsbury’s says it “liked the look of the beta.anobii.com as a good platform to be able to sell eBooks to customers in the UK.
“Consequently, eBooks by Sainsbury’s is a new name and brand created for beta.anobii.com so that there is a familiarity with a trusted brand for UK customers who want to discover, read and recommend books online.”
The statement confirms that “Anobii will continue to exist as a social network for book lovers at www.anobii.com. This website is available worldwide and will be maintained by a dedicated Anobii team.
“The beta.anobii.com will change in name, logo and URL to eBooks by Sainsbury’s from 20th February 2013. The URL will be http://www.sainsburysebooks.co.uk.”