Apple has announced that it will be taking on primarily Amazon, but also the likes of Barnes & Noble, with the launch of its own "iBook" store.

The new offering, which will allow users to buy and read books from a number of different publishers will go up directly against Amazon's Kindle offering, however the iPad offers the full interactivity of a colour screen, video support and more.

The books, which look to be priced from around $7.99 to $14.99, will be available from at least five major publishers, with Steve Jobs giving credit to Amazon as it announced the launch.

"Amazon has done a great job of pioneering this... we're going to stand on their shoulders for this", said Jobs, revealing a very attractive and slick looking store interface.

How bookworms will get on with reading content on the iPad's, or iPhone's screens, rather than the flicker-free, easy-on-the-eye E-Ink options from the Kindle and other dedicated ebook reader devices, is yet to be seen.

Recommended articles