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Amazon New York event spurs talk of new Kindle model
Mon Feb 9, 2009 10:00am EST
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By Alexandria Sage
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A new Kindle electronic reader from Amazon.com Inc could attract more fans with design improvements and a lower price, but hype over the device may be overblown -- with mainstream popularity hardly guaranteed.
The digital book reader expected to be unveiled next week would be the second version of the device launched in November 2007 hailed as revolutionary by the Seattle-based company.
Amazon has been mum on the topic of a new Kindle, but the company has scheduled a press conference at New York's Morgan Library for Monday, February 9, which could portend news of a version two, analysts and Kindle fans said.
The Kindle helped spark consumer interest in portable readers beyond Sony Corp's Sony Reader. A glowing review last fall from television host Oprah Winfrey added to the Kindle's buzz, spurring backlogs during the holidays.
"The Kindle is huge," said technology forecaster Paul Saffo "The Kindle is to reading is what the iPod was to music - only bigger."
Kindle users can read books and newspapers on the wireless device that weighs less than a paperback. Amazon sells most best sellers for $9.99 and the retailer uses its close ties with publishers to make a wide array of books available. Over 200 titles, which are delivered wirelessly, can be stored on the current Kindle.
Rumors of a new Kindle reader began surfacing last fall after one blog, www.BoyGeniusReport.com, posted photos it identified as the Kindle 2 that had some design improvements and a joystick instead of a scroll wheel.
That might be welcome news for some users, who have written on blogs that "The Kindle isn't the sexiest kid in school" and complained about the placement of its buttons, lack of backlighting, slow page turns and high price.
Others have said they would like the Kindle to be able to annotate books, and to display charts and graphs better.
The Kindle is a tiny part of Amazon's web retail business, but it attracts a disproportionate amount of interest.
Mark Mahaney of Citigroup estimated that Amazon sold half a million Kindles last year, about a third more than the number of iPods sold by Apple Inc in its first year. Kindle revenue could surpass $1.2 billion by 2010, he estimated, or more than 4 percent of total projected revenue that year.
Others see the Kindle differently: "It's kind of cool and it has a huge 'gee whiz' factor and like a lot of things Amazon does, it has a great halo affect on the stock. But that's it," said Bernstein Research's Jeffrey Lindsay.
Amazon shares are down 12 pct since a year ago, compared to a 31 percent drop on the Nasdaq 100.
HIGH-END CONSUMERS LOVE THEM
No one knows how popular the Kindle is, because Amazon does not release sales data. But the device, currently priced at $359 on Amazon's website, was out of stock most of the fourth quarter. Amazon's Chief Executive Jeff Bezos has said he was surprised by "unusually strong demand" for the Kindle during the holidays. Continued...
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