Apple Inc. Wednesday released a beta version of iOS 11.3 to developers with a rebranded version of the iBooks reading app named “Books,” but the simple name masks bigger things to come.

According to a new Bloomberg report, sources familiar with the matter said the iPhone maker is quietly working on a major upgrade of the app, which could play a key role in its growth plans. Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook last year set a goal of doubling revenues from mobile services by 2020. This part of the company’s business, which among others includes iBooks, the App Store and iCloud, rose 34 percent in the fourth quarter.

The reading app has so far played a somewhat secondary role compared to the other services in the lineup, which is reflected in the fact that the last time it received a significant update was years ago. Furthermore, Apple’s e-book business took a hit in 2014 after the U.S. Department of Justice fined the company $450 million as part of an antitrust lawsuit that involved five major publishers.

The period since then has seen Amazon.com Inc. cement its leadership position in the e-book market. If the new report is true, Apple’s push to modernize iBooks could significantly increase the level of competition in online books.

According to the tipsters, the iPhone maker is working to give the app a “simpler look” that will include a book catalog similar in appearance to the recently redesigned App Store. The new iBooks app reportedly also has a Reading Now tab, presumably to give the user quick access to the titles at the top of their reading list, and a dedicated audiobook section. The latter feature is particularly notable given that Google LLC rolled out a similar enhancement to Google Play earlier this week.

Bloomberg reported that Apple had hired Kashif Zafar, the former senior vice president of Amazon’s Audible audiobook division, to lead the initiative. The new Books app is expected to release in “coming months.”

Apple has another major project currently in the works if an earlier leak is to be believed. In December, insiders claimed that the company is building a cross-platform development framework that will enable app makers to make their iOS services available on the Mac without any time-consuming code rewrites.

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