# Apple allows eBooks on iTunes U sparking eBook Poker: I see your Shakespeare's First Folio and raise you 100 interactive eBooks

\[flickr\]3121569986\[/flickr\]

[Apple have announced the ePub (one of the eBook formats) is now available on iTunes U](http://discussions.apple.com/thread.jspa?messageID=12500096). Users of iTunes have been able to view eBooks in ePub format for some time using the iBook app for iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, but users of iTunes U have been restricted to distributing text using PDF.

Brian Kelly has recently been questioning [What Are UK Universities Doing With iTunesU?](http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2010/10/11/what-are-uk-universities-doing-with-itunesu/) as well as [iTunes U: an Institutional Perspective](http://ukwebfocus.wordpress.com/2010/10/25/itunes-u-an-institutional-perspective/), which is a guest post by Jeremy Speller, Director of Web Services at UCL. In the later post Jeremy highlights that for many iTunes U is ‘PR fluff’, mainly used by institutions to market their brand over any educational benefit. Jeremy saying:

> For some reason this view is quite prevalent among those who don’t use the system and in my opinion misses the point of iTunes U completely. Sure, there is publicity to be had and, in UCL’s case as a launch partner, was valuable. Of course general PR shorts can be provided. But the real assets should be educational and examples of your institution’s scholarship.

I have to put my hand up and say I’m in the ‘iTunes U is a PR tool’ camp, but can you blame me when the Open University’s VC Martin Bean highlights that [88% of their iTunes U traffic is from outside the UK](http://hawksey.info/ititle/seek.php?q=88%) and is perceived as free marketing.

There is undoubtedly a cost to making resources available, to the point that even one of the biggest players in this field [MIT are considering an OER paywall](http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20100918074309955). At the same time there are also benefits, if not educationally, as a marketing opportunity. This in itself has got to be a good thing, stimulating the sector to release content, even if it is just to grab headlines. Besides I’m quite enjoying iTunes U poker: I see your [Shakespeare's First Folio joins iTunes U](http://www.ox.ac.uk/media/news_stories/2010/102910_2.html) and raise you [OU makes one hundred interactive eBooks available on iTunes U](http://www.open.ac.uk/platform/news/ou-news/ou-makes-one-hundred-interactive-ebooks-available-itunes-u).

\[And guess what if you need a tool to make ePub eBooks our [Create&Convert tool](http://www.rsc-ne-scotland.org.uk/e-inclusion/?p=1449) can help.\]