Harry Potter will live on in Pottermore: J.K.Rowling announces interactive Harry Potter world opening October of 2011

If your child was one of the millions upset after finishing the last Harry Potter book, tell them to hold onto their capes.

It was announced today that J.K.Rowling, author of the Harry Potter series of books, will partner with Sony to create a virtual world called “Pottermore.” In a video released today, Rowling reveals snippets of the website and asks visitors to come back on July 31st to enter to win an access pass. The rest of the muggles will have to wait until October.

Parents will love Pottermore because it’s free to use, and anything that encourages reading in kid’s who don’t like to read is a plus. Children will love it, as the Harry Potter characters that they have grown to love will come to life in an online experience. But this isn’t going to be Webkinz, Pottermore will also be a website that will sell the Harry Potter books as ebooks.

J.K. Rowling, in a released statement on the website said,  “I wanted to give something back to the fans that have followed Harry so devotedly over the years, and to bring the stories to a new digital generation. I hope fans and those new to Harry will have as much fun helping to shape Pottermore as I have. Just as I have contributed to the website, everyone else will be able to join in by submitting their own comments, drawings and other content in a safe and friendly environment – Pottermore has been designed as a place to share the stories with your friends as you journey through the site.”

Starting today, users can enter their email addresses at http://www.pottermore.com to be notified when registration is open, but because the website has received over a million visits within the past 36 hours, you may receive notice that you are unable to submit.

On July 31st, the website will issue an online challenge. 1 million lucky people will complete it and be granted early access to Pottermore as beta testers. For those of us not in the UK, be sure to try to login on July 30th instead of the 31st or check for UK timezones prior to trying.

With more and more parents turning to the iPad to encourage their child to read, Pottermore is good news. Not only will you be able to buy the Potter series for your tablet computer, but the interactive options should make your kid want to pick up the book again and again.

So grab your broomsticks, it looks like Pottermore is going to take ebooks to an all new level. For more information, see Pottermore.