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HarperCollins has become the latest publisher to launch a full ebook programme, Print­Week can exclusively reveal.

HarperCollins joins Penguin, Pan Macmillan and Random House in announcing its intention to cap­­­­i­­t­­a­­lise on the growing market for publishing in electronic formats.

HarperCollins’ announcement comes at a time of cataclysmic change for book publishing and coincides with its launch of a new imprint, based on a non-traditional publishing model.

A spokesperson for the company said: “HarperCollins is launching its ebook programme this September, with a full complement of frontlist and backlist titles.

“We will be publishing simultaneous print and ebook editions of non-illustrated books and are currently undertaking an extensive review of our 10,000-copy backlist and clearing rights and royalties for as many of these titles as possible.”

After a slow start, the market for ebooks is growing. Statistics compiled by the International Digital Pub­lishing Forum, show that global sales for downloads
have risen from $6m (£3m) in 2002, to around $33m (£17m) in 2007.

Others are looking to cash in on the ebook market, including Amazon, which last year launched its Kindle e-reader.

Meanwhile, HarperCollins has announced a new US imprint, which will operate on a firm sales-only basis, meaning it won’t accept returns from retailers.

Hyperion founder Bob Miller, who was headhunted to launch the as-yet-unnamed unit, hopes to cut down on the waste that is inherent in the book publishing process. Miller quoted average return rates of 40% in the US for frontlist consumer titles.