Publishers Try to Protect E-Book Prices from Apple, Amazon

HarperCollins (NWS) is in talks with Apple (AAPL) to make e-books available for a Tablet device that Apple is widely expected to launch on January 27, The Wall Street Journal reported Monday. Aren't other major publishers negotiating too? And considering the skyrocketing growth of the e-book market -- which jumped 200% in November, to $18.3 million, according to the Association of American Publishers -- shouldn't the big houses have made sure they could sell their wares on every available device, especially one that many observers think will be a game-changer in the manner of the iPod?