In real-life, one is able to gift friends and family just about anything, such as albums, clothing, toys, gadgets, books, and etc., but online is a different story, at least as far as digital content is concerned. As it stands in the iTunes Store, users will be able to gift things such as songs, apps, and videos, but oddly enough the option to gift iBooks has not yet been included, probably because Apple and book publishers have yet to work out an agreement regarding such an option. Well it looks like in the meantime, Apple has filed for a patent that would allow users to gift iBooks in the future, and instead of merely presenting the book in a digital format, it will allow for a bit of personalization.
For example during the course of reading an iBook, the reader might come across a phrase of a paragraph within the book that reminds them of someone. By highlighting that portion of text, they will then get the option of sending that iBook they are reading as a gift, with the ability to use the snippet as a gift message, or have a personalized message incorporated into the file itself (we’re guessing this is why publishers and Apple have yet to come to an agreement since it would essentially modifying the content of the book). Once the gift has been sent and the sender appropriately debited, the receiver of the gift has the option of accepting it, declining it in which the money is refunded, or re-gifting it which isn’t very nice to be honest. There’s no telling when the ability to gift iBooks will come into effect, but for now Apple has made sure to get ready for it.