NEW DELHI: The government plans to start directly offering the books it publishes through online platforms such as Amazon Flipkart and Google Play . The process is likely to start with the annual ‘India’ compendium followed by another 150 books. It also plans to start selling digital versions at a 25% discount.The Publications Division of the information and broadcasting ministry is in talks with ecommerce companies on the plan, said officials aware of the matter. “Earlier, we used to sell the book to our authorized agents, who in turn would sell it online,” said an official. “Now, the publications division wants to sell it directly also. We are gearing up for this.” This year’s ‘India’ book is likely to be launched on February 18.The other books that the all women publications division wants to sell directly are titles based on India's freedom struggle, culture, heritage and important national leaders. It will continue to sell through agents as well. The government will sell the books at maximum retail price but will leave it to the sites to decide on how much to charge buyers, one official said. Most online sites seek to compete for customers by offering discounts.The ministry’s legal department is closely scrutinising the process. The government feels that the online route will help it to reach its target audience. Indians are gravitating toward ecommerce and a similar trend has been taking place in books. Last year, the publisher of a book by President Pranab Mukherjee signed a deal with Amazon that gave it a 21-day lead over brick and mortar stores.The move is part of the Publications Division’s effort to bring business practices in line with contemporary trends in the industry. The ecommerce thrust is part of this policy.Apart from the 25% discount for digital publications, this includes possible marketing agreements with ecommerce platforms for better visibility and accessibility. The policy stipulates that revenue from online sales of digital versions will be shared in a 70:30 ratio between the Publications Division and ecommerce platforms. These tie-ups will be reviewed after two years.