The Need: Barnes & Noble challenged Automata Studios to develop a framework and application for their NOOK device series, on which they would provide a fun and exciting experience for children reading kids’ books like “Splat The Cat”, “Puff The Magic Dragon”, and “The Tale of Peter Rabbit”. The framework needed to comply with the existing ePub standard, while also providing support for detailed animations and interactivity.

The Solution: Automata Studios, working with Barnes & Noble engineers, created the ePib, a subset of the ePub standard that describes a digital book that can include animated and/or interactive elements. Automata also created the first ePib reader, the NOOK Kids’ Reader (codenamed “Fava”) on the NOOK Android devices.

The NOOK Kids’ Reader allows kids to read their favorite books or have those books read to them. They can interact with their favorite characters and play games within their favorite books. They can even record their own voices reading the story, or Grandma can record hers using the latest Read & Record feature.

Automata continues to enhance the NOOK Kids’ reader with Barnes & Noble, most recently releasing to the Nook Tablet.