A Netflix-like rental service for books via Amazon’s Kindle? I’ve always thought a subscription model made a lot of sense for the Kindle (or you get $200 worth of “free” books with the purchase of a Kindle, or make the hardware free if you agree to buy 20 books). It will be very challenging to get publishers to participate, though, so it will be a chicken-or-the-egg problem. Until Amazon can get the vast majority of publishers on board, the subscription won’t have a lot of value in the minds of consumers — they’ll complain “my favorite book isn’t available.” However, the ebook (mainly Kindle) got critical mass in terms of sales long before I predicted. So who knows?
The Kindle maker is trying to get book publishers to buy into a book rental service for digital content, reports the Wall Street Journal. But publishers aren’t excited, believing that such a Netflix-like service could lower the value of books and strain relationships with other book retailers. The service would charge customers a fixed monthly fee.
According to the WSJ, Amazon told publishers that the service would feature older titles. Publishers would also receive a “substantial fee” for participating.
via Tech Today: Amazon Digital Library, Book Prices Pressure Publishers – Digits – WSJ.



















Amazon’s Android tablet — an iPad killer, or son of Kindle?
A year or two ago, some experts were predicting that Amazon would junk the Kindle, and exit the hardware business entirely. Doesn’t look like that’s happening anytime soon.
Amazon’s new tablet can be a huge win for them, and some great competition for Apple’s iPad. If Amazon can deliver a simple, intuitive Android app store, Apple is going to have to rethink its pricing strategy with the iPad. This is starting to really make sense. The result: the sale of more apps, more Kindle books, and more of Amazon’s gazillion other products. No doubt this blows B&N’s Nook out of the water.
Contrast the progress of Amazon’s digital content sales vs. Apple’s iBookstore, which has been an unmitigated flop, as far as I can tell.
The NYT is covering the Amazon news conference:
Amazon now has a Kindle lineup that starts at $79 and tops out at $199. Mr. Bezos is thanking the teams that made these devices and all of us for coming. Lights are back up. Let the competition begin.
10:53 A.M. Price of Fire
The Fire will cost $199, Mr. Bezos says. (Remember, the iPad starts at $499.) “We’re delivering premium products at non-premium prices,” Mr. Bezos says.
via Live Blogging the Amazon Tablet Announcement – NYTimes.com.