Tech Flash is reporting that Google is going to sell digital books. Putting aside the issues with Google’s book scanning initiative which has many problems, this is a good thing. To have some more outlets and break Amazon’s initial stranglehold on distribution and forced low prices is a good thing. Obviously, we’ll see how it works out. The WSJ notes that there is some candy for the small independent store which sounds promising.

Google says its new service—called Google Editions—will allow users to buy digital copies of books they discover through its book-search service. It will also allow book retailers—even independent shops—to sell Google Editions on their own sites, taking the bulk of the revenue. Google has yet to release details about pricing and which publishers are expected to participate.