EPUB

EPUB is an e-book file format with the extension .epub which can be downloaded and read on devices like smartphones, tablets, computers, or e-readers. It is a free and open standard published by the International Digital Publishing Forum. The term is short for electronic publication and is sometimes styled ePub. EPUB became an official standard of the IDPF in September 2007, superseding the older Open eBook standard. The Book Industry Study Group endorses EPUB 3 as the format of choice for packaging content and has stated that the global book publishing industry should rally around a single standard. EPUB is the most widely supported vendor-independent XML-based (as opposed to PDF) e-book format; that is, it is supported by the largest number of hardware readers, including Amazon Kindle Fire.

It is also widely used on many software readers such as iBooks on Apple devices, and Google Books on Android. iBooks also supports the proprietary iBook format. This format is based on the EPUB format but depends upon custom widget code in the iBooks app to function.