WASHINGTON—Who would have thought, that on the first, second and third day of 2008, Amazon.com Inc.'s heralded $399 Kindle e-book reader was still out of stock.
The Kindle is a 10.3-ounce wireless, portable electronic-reader (e-reader) that can store up to 200 books, and many more with an SD memory card, as well as download subscription magazines and international newspapers at an extra cost. For $1 per month, the user has access to over 250 Internet blogs. Amazon claims that more than 90,000 books and close to 100 of the 112 on the New York Times Best Sellers list are available for purchase.
"No monthly wireless bills, service plans, or commitments—we take care of the wireless delivery [of the books] so you can simply click, buy and read," and own it in less than a minute, if within reach of the Sprint wireless network, said Amazon.com on its Website.
Users can buy e-books directly on the Kindle and sample the first chapter without charge. The cost for the books varies, depending on the going price, but new releases and New York Times best sellers cost $9.99.
No more magnifying glasses needed to read books with small prints. The reader has six adjustable font sizes to choose from.
Rising Popularity of E-Books
Statistics, published by the International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF), show that e-books are becoming popular among book junkies. In 2002, revenue from e-book wholesale was around $5.7 million. In 2006, the same figure had increased to above $20 million and between January and October of 2007, e-book sales amounted to more than $26 million.
"Retail numbers may be as much as double the above figures due to industry wholesale discounts," according to the IDPF Website.
It is only a fantasy now, but the e-reader could ultimately become a dream device for students needing to carry a load of heavy books, if textbook publishers are willing to release books in electronic formats and to reduce their prices from over $100 to a $15 e-book price, suggests Fran Miller in the article "Amazon Kindle vs. Sony e-Reader; Demise of Books?" published on Yourtub.com, an online blog.
"Students would love to carry a device like this [the Kindle] instead of a big and heavy load of textbooks in a backpack," said Peter Fader, marketing professor at the University of Pennsylvania, in a recent Knowledge@Wharton (KW) article "Getting a Read on Amazon's New Kindle."
Kindle Users Speak their Mind
According to reviews on the Amazon.com, users are delighted with the Kindle.
"After five minutes I've ceased to think I'm looking at a screen. It's not like reading a computer screen. It's more like reading a piece of paper. I think it's actually clearer, [and] easier on the eye than the printed words," said Michael Lewis, author of Moneyball.
Steve Gibson from Southern California professed to have purchased almost every e-book device available in the market. The minute it was rumored that Amazon would bring a new kind of e-reader onto the market he was anxiously awaiting its release.
"Is the Kindle perfect? Not yet. Is it expensive? Yep, Does it feel like a first-generation product? Absolutely. Will I purchase the next Kindle too? Please let me be the first in line," Gibson said.
The Kindle is not worth its money unless one is an avid book buff, because one has to buy at least 10 books to break even, claims Roger Hiles on his blog Space Age Librarian. He asks, "How many people really buy enough books to justify a $400 reader?" Hiles equates the Kindle with the Newton, marketed by Apple Inc. between 1993 and 1998, that never gained market acceptance because of the high cost and incompatibility with other software.
Academia Chimes In
Discussing the Kindle, University of Pennsylvania professors acknowledge that the Kindle marketing blitz has served its purpose—it's getting the word out to the public. They suggest in the article that Amazon is "getting some buzz about it, [because] the fact that they've found a way to integrate this hardware technology with what they do—selling books—and reminding people that they are a big online book store," is very innovative.
The professors applaud the idea of pushing a new business concept and the "imaginative experiments by Jeff Bezos," CEO of Amazon.
"I would vote thumbs down on the device, but thumbs up on the service and thumbs up on the creativity of the mind that keeps reinventing the publishing business," said Don Huesman, Senior Director of Information Technology at the university in the article.
Retailers, such as Borders Group and Barnes & Noble Inc. don't seem to be worried, or have not caught on yet about the loss of business through e-readers. The professors suggest that publishers, such as Random House Inc., Prentice Hall Inc. and the Brookings Institution Press will keep the bookstores out of negotiations with Amazon and other e-reader providers until they are suddenly faced with something that might send their revenues into a nose-dive.
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