Penguin and the iPad

Below is a short video about some really cool things that Penguin is planning to do with Apple's newest device, the iPad. All of these things center around kids' books and learning (which in interesting, because if I had kids, I don't know if I'd let my three-year-old play with an iPad...I'd be the annoying, hovering parent, worried that the kid was going to abuse the device). But, about one minute and forty some seconds in is a Vampire Academy platform that looks interesting--it allows you to read the books, watch author videos, and participate in discussions with other readers. It's like a combination of a book, author website, and social network. Check it out:

I think the Vampire Academy section is especially interesting. Honestly, it never occurred to me that these are the types of things that can be done with all of this new technology. It's thrilling to think about. For the price of a book, you can get so much more than a novel, but all of these web extras that you would normally have to go hunting for on your computer. Granted, you would sacrifice the actual, physical book, but that is an entirely different discussion.

Authors and readers, what do you think about this? Would you be more inclined to get and use an iPad if more books and series had a bunch of special features like the Vampire Academy example in the video? I am definitely thinking it would make it a bit easier to sell books and learn more about authors if with many e-books, you could also instantly access info about the author, their other books, and read excerpts and news and watch videos. It's making me get a bit more excited about eReaders, that's for sure!