A new internet service has been launched for lovers of Welsh literature and culture.

The www.gwales.com website will feature 15,000 Welsh and English language titles, with plans to add 1,000 titles each year.

The service has been set up by the Welsh Books Council and was launched in Aberystwyth by Tom Middlehurst AM, Assembly Secretary for Post-16 Education and Training.

The site will provide an information service about novels and reference titles from Wales and the means to order them from a shop of their choice.

Profit

The move follows the growing use of the internet to order books, pioneering by Amazon.com, which has proved popular but has yet to make a profit.

The gwales.com web book store project has received backing from the National Assembly, Llwybr-Pathway and Ceredigion County Council.

Welsh Books Council Director Gwerfyl Pierce Jones said it was an innovative development.

"Placing our complete list of available books on the internet is seen as a major achievement for us at the Books Council.

Promote

"It is also an opportunity for all sectors of the book trade in Wales to be an integral part of the latest technological development, which will be appreciated by publishers and booksellers alike, irrespective of their size."

Council Deputy Director Pedr ap Llwyd added: "We are extremely grateful to our partners for their sponsorship for this scheme and appreciate their contribution to this important development.

"With everyone's co-operation we are confident that we can promote the wealth of books published annually in Wales to readers all over the world."