Amazon sells own gadget to boost e-books
Hoping to take a page from the iPod, Amazon introduces Kindle, their very own e-book reader. Thinner than most paperbacks and weighs 10.3 ounces, Amazon boasts that Kindle can hold some 200 books, along with newspapers, magazines and an entire dictionary, including, of course, music and video services.
Amazon began as an online retailer, focusing on building the front and back end services and developing a strong bond with clients through personalized features and customer service, such as free shipping.
Jeff Bezos, Chief-Executive-Officer of Amazon, says that readers can buy and download books directly to the Kindle, without having to use a computer—through Sprint Nextel Corp.’s high-speed EV-DO cellular network, enabling readers to download books in less than a minute. Readers can also take notes on what they read and store them on Amazon’s servers.
Mr. Bezos said Kindle was most likely to appeal to travelers and others who want to carry several books with them. “Anyone who is reading two, three, four books at the same time should have one of these,” he said in an interview.
The Kindle screen has no backlight to reduce battery use and eyestrain. Instead, its screen reflects light, making it easier to read in a bright room, using less power and generating less heat. Mr. Bezos added that he thought Kindle would be more comfortable for people to curl up with than previous reading devices.
Amazon, one of the world’s largest booksellers, reached agreements with all major U.S. publishers to sell their wares on Kindle. So far it has about 90,000 titles in its database and 90 percent of current best sellers.
Publishing executives are optimistic about Kindle.
“You kind of understand why it has been three years in development because it offers so much in an uncomplicated way,” said David Young, the chief executive of the Hachette Book Group USA, which owns Little Brown.
“The big challenge, of course, is that it is still relatively expensive,” he added. “You have to be a very committed book person to get a repay on that investment.”
Though the publishers main concern is the return on investment—most publishing houses have been spending a great deal to digitize their libraries for electronic readers—Mr. Young further says, “If it does contribute to the many millions of dollars we have invested as an industry, that’s great.”
Among the newspapers available are The New York Times, selling for $13.99 a month and The Wall Street Journal at $9.99 a month. Over 300 blogs are available for 99 cents or $1.99 a month, with the agreement that Amazon shares some of that fee with newspaper and blog publishers. Sony Corporation, which introduced an e-book reader a year ago, has about 20,000 titles for sale.
The device, selling for $399.00, will only be available at Amazon.
