The Kindle - Hits & Misses
With the introduction of the Kindle, e-book reader, Amazon.com is trying to follow in the footsteps of Apple’s iPod and iTunes business model. My initial reaction is maybe. From recent reviews it has quite a bit going for it. I understand that he reading surface is excellent. The best feature is that the device is part of a total package subscription service, a la iTunes.
This subscription business model can be a major boon to writers and the publishing industry. It has the potential to give a single work or author a much wider audience. Anyone in the business knows that the real value of a publishing house is promotion, though they do damn little of it. The medium, ink on “dead trees”, and the distribution channels are the mechanics of the business. The Kindle eliminates those costs to allow more money for promotion. This is good news.
There is a significant down-side to Amazon’s Kindle. It is the cost of loss or damage to the delivery device. At one time in my business life, I traveled heavily, 50 - 75%. I read everything in paperback. They were light and cheap. I traded them with other “road warriors”. If I dorpped my paperback book in a puddle or lost it. It was no big deal. I’d buy another. At $399 plus tax the Kindle will not stand up to the puddle or my fear of loosing it. At that price it becomes something I have to worry about. When I was a traveler I had more than enough to worry about. I didn’t want to worry about the diversion I would employ while waiting for my flight.
Bottom line: As a writer, I hope the Kindle and the accompanying service does very well. I see a ton of benefits for me. As a traveler, I wouldn’t buy one until the price of the device fell substantially. It would have to be somewhere in the range of nuisance value if I lost it.
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