SoftBook Press created the SoftBook Reader in 1999, along with the
SoftBook Network, an internet-based content delivery service. With the
SoftBook Reader, "people could easily, quickly and securely download a
wide selection of books and periodicals using its built-in internet
connection", with a device that, "unlike a computer, was ergonomically
designed for the reading of long documents and books." The investors of
Softbook Press were Random House and Simon & Schuster.