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Time for a good e-book?
Book publishers ramp up
Publishers are ramping up the number of digital books in their collections. Random House, with more than 8,000 electronic books, said recently it plans to increase its digital holdings to nearly 15,000 volumes.
“More people are doing things on screens every day, and I don’t see valid arguments why trade books or consumer books would be fundamentally excepted from that trend,” said Matt Schatz of Random House Technology Services.
“My sense is that most of the time when people buy a book, ultimately it’s to read the text, to learn something new, to fall in love with a character, to be transported to a different time and place.” There’s no reason that can’t happen on a screen, especially with display technology improving, he said.
“There are lots of reasons print books will remain, such as coffee table books or books with beautiful images or pictures. And clearly, there are also people who like having books on their shelves. They like the warmth it brings to a room, or what the books say about them.”
Books, both electronic and printed, will continue to thrive, “just as there’s a healthy population still buying CDs for music,” along with digital music files, Schatz said.
Sony and Amazon’s products are the two leading digital readers available in the United States. In Europe, iRex Technologies, a Philips Electronics company spin-off, has the iLiad Book Edition, a digital reader that is being sold by Borders in the United Kingdom.
Sony’s e-readers are sold at Borders stores in the United States, as well as at Sony retail stores and various chains. Because travelers are an obvious market for e-readers, Sony will place representatives, with e-readers in hand, at Grand Central Station in the weeks ahead to promote their devices.
The company is pushing its “see it before you buy” advantage that the Kindle does not have quite as handily.
'See a Kindle in Your City'
Amazon has a "See A Kindle in Your City" program, where those who want to see the device can link up with Kindle owners in their areas. And, Kindle owners are quite passionate about the device.
“In November, I read eight books, three short stories and my almost-daily New York Times,” using the Kindle, said Leslie H. Nicoll, a nurse from Portland, Maine.
“That is probably more books than I read in all of 2007. I love the Kindle because it has gotten me reading like I did in the ‘old’ days — when my eyes were better and my wrists didn't get tired from holding a book.”
Nicoll, who is also the editor of two professional nursing journals and an e-book publisher, answers questions from other Kindle owners at “Kindle Discussions” area of Amazon.com. She also wrote “The Amazon Kindle FAQ” e-book ($1.59), sold through Amazon.
Kindle users can get discounted subscriptions on various publications, including The New York Times, a big draw for Nicoll.
“My New York Times subscription costs $168 a year vs. paying $665 a year for a paper subscription here in Maine,” she said. “That’s a huge savings.”
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