Apple is expanding the inventory of its iBookstore in Australia. The iBookstore will now include eBook titles from Macmillan, Hachette Book Group, Hardie Grant, HarperCollins Publishers, Murdoch Publishers, Wiley, and Smashwords.

Delimiter has more: “Up until now, the Australian version of Apple’s eBook marketplace, the iBookstore, has been fairly sparsely populated compared with rivals. But today it appears as if the company has added half a dozen major new publishers to its catalogue in a major move.”

Smashwords says that the launch will include almost 10,000 of its eBooks. The Smashwords blog has more: “Just yesterday I returned from a five week speaking tour to Brazil, Australia and New Zealand. Unlike in the U.S., where ebooks now account for nearly 10 percent of the overall trade book market (and a greater percentage of unit volume), ebooks account for probably under percent of the book markets in Brazil, Australia and New Zealand. In other words, these markets are where the U.S. market was at a mere two years ago. These markets are poised for similar or faster growth, especially as device makers such as Apple open ebook stores and expand the availability and selection of affordable ebooks.”