Oprah's book recommendations have undergone high-tech enhancements for increased usability on The Oprah Magazine's iPad app.
The July iPad issue of O features an enhanced version of O's sixth annual Summer Reading List, including exlusive excerpts of 21 of the 28 books featured in the issue.
Subscribers to O's iPad format will now be able to make in-app purchases of the featured books through Amazon or Barnes & Noble, reports paidcontent.org.
According to Michelle Shih, O Director of Digital Editions and Lifestyle, the app currently does not lead featured titles to the iBookstore because the format does not allow in-app purchasing for The Oprah Magazine.
The reading list also features book recommendation by format, telling readers which book reads best for the iPad or for print.
Free excerpts are not a new phenomenon on the iPad or on other platforms such as Kindle, but the new curated Oprah-approved list could add an extra incentive of convenience for O readers.
Excerpt and in-app purchasing have already been featured in O's "Reading Room" and "Books that Make a Difference" columns, and the August issue will have excerpts for all featured books in the magazine.
July's issue is also the first month that O's iPad edition is available for subscription (along with other selected Hearst titles).
An individual issue is $3.99, and subscriptions cost $19.99 per year or $1.99 per month.
