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| J. K. Rowling at the Pottermore announcement event |
Pottermore, the official interactive website for Harry Potter fans, will finally open its virtual doors to the public in early April, according to the Pottermore Insider blog. (No specific date has been announced.) Pottermore has been in beta testing since September with a million members, drawn from the several millions who signed up last summer. It’s not clear from their announcement how the opening will proceed, nor whether those on the waiting list will be “admitted” first.
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| Pottermore screen |
It’s also not clear whether the Harry Potter e-books will be available for sale through the website right away. Nate Hoffelder of The Digital Reader blog contacted the folks at Pottermore and was assured that “The shop will open at a similar time in early April, no specific date or partner details as yet.”
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| Paper Hedwig, from the Pottermore announcement video |
I’m not sure whether I’m happy that they’re finally opening the site to the public. On the one hand, the advance publicity, back in summer 2011, made the site look awesome. At the time, I could hardly wait, I was so excited. On the other hand… I don’t have enough time to keep up with everything I’m doing in real life and on the Internet as it is. I love Harry Potter, but if I get onto Pottermore, it’s going to become a time sink, one I probably can’t afford.
On the third hand… I’m really looking forward to having the HP books on my e-reader. I wonder if they’ll be text only, or will include the wonderful little beginning-of-the-chapter illustrations of the US editions?
4/20/2012: The site is open and I’m signed up!
