Now that the ABA is partnering with Kobo to supply ebooks to independent bookstores, the organization has announced that Ingram will serve as the exclusive distributor of Kobo devices to ABA member stores. For now, Ingram is authorized to wholesale devices only to ABA stores; the company says permitting them to wholesale to other accounts “will be a Kobo decision.” ABA member stores who order Kobo devices from Ingram will also take part in a special launch incentive timed for the holiday season that includes free displays and demo devices, an unspecified cash bonus for participating, rebates for sell-through, and […]
eNews
More from Amazon: Merging the Digital/Audio Reading Experience, Kindle Serials
Amazon’s new device launch on Wednesday garnered the most media attention, but the company also introduced some intriguing new features that merge or break apart reading experiences — while potentially raising rights-related questions. People have long speculated that it would be great to “sync” ebooks and digital audio recordings so you can go back and forth between reading and listening without losing your place, and Amazon has built that with what they call Whispersync for Voice. It offers what they call a “continuous reading experience” between digital and audio editions, in which a customer can start reading one edition and continue in […]
Amazon Will Ship Three Kindle Fire HD Tablets, Including $499 4G With $50/Year Data Plan
The theme of Amazon’s Thursday afternoon press conference in Santa Monica was not so much the device particulars as ceo Jeff Bezos’s revised explanation of their goal and purpose: “People don’t want gadgets anymore. They want services. They want services that improve over time.” And “Kindle Fire is a service.” Bezos also explained, “We want to make money when people USE our devices, not when they BUY our devices. That is better alignment.” (Last year’s opening pitch for Kindle Fire was that “what we’re doing is making premium products and offering them at non-premium prices.”) The new mantra translates into […]
Trade Sales Rise In May; eBooks Hit New Record
The AAP monthly sales reports remain relentlessly cheerful, with May statistics released Wednesday morning showing strong trade sales and another burst in ebook sales. Total trade sales from the reporting publishers were $535 million, up 17 percent from $457 million a year ago. In contrast to some previous months, the gains came from higher true shipments/sales in multiple categories, rather than just fewer returns. eBook sales, which had been growing at a slower pace since last fall, hit a new record for the month, at $133.7 million overall–well ahead of the previous high mark of $121.1 million in January. (That […]
eNews: First Kobo Announces New eReader and Tablet Devices; Amazon Product Launch Rumor Mill
As is now their custom, Kobo took the unassuming route of announcing its latest line of ereaders and tablets by press release on Wednesday morning, a few hours before Amazon is set to launch their newest devices in Santa Monica at a press conference (at 1:30 Eastern). Clearly glo(w)ing ereaders will be abundant this fall, following Nook’s successful launch of their GlowLight model and an authentic-seeming leak of the Kindle Paperwhite: Kobo will ship the $129 Glo (eInk reader with frontlit screen) and $80 Mini (smaller 5″ touchscreen) on October 1, with the 7″ Arc tablet, priced at $199 (8GB) and […]
Amazon Will Launch New Kindle Fire Next Week; Has Sold Roughly 6 Million Units
Amazon essentially confirmed in a press release that next week’s press conference will include a new version of their Kindle Fire, since the first edition is now “sold out.” CEO Jeff Bezos says, “Kindle Fire is sold out, but we have an exciting roadmap ahead.” Amazon claims that over the past nine months (between December and August, including pre-orders), “Kindle Fire has captured 22 percent of tablet sales in the US.” Thanks to the recent court case between Apple and Samsung, we have pretty precise comps for tablet sales from those two companies. (Also thanks to that case, we know […]