Amazon releases Kindle app for the iPhone
If you have an iPhone or an iPod Touch, and you wish you had a Kindle, now you almost do. Amazon has released an app and much of its Kindle content for the Apple mobile devices.
The application is already available in the Apple app store. The app lets iPhone and iPod Touch users read the very same electronic books that Kindle owners can buy and read on Amazon.com. Just like the Kindle, the iPhone application lets users change the size of the text on their screen, as well as add bookmarks, notes and highlights. Instantly, there is much more quality content available for any reader that also has an iPhone.
This is an excellent move by Amazon to increase their market share of on-line books sales. There are a lot more iPhones than there are Kindles, and this app could send Amazon e-book sales through the roof. The content for the Kindle iPhone app must be purchased on the Amazon Web site and not via the iPhone app, but that should not be a problem since the iPhone and Touch can both access the internet.
It would appear that the only restriction on Kindle content is that iPhone and Touch users will not be able to read magazines or newspapers because of the smaller screen sizes on the Apple devices. As a bonus, though, the iPhone and Touch will be able to show a book in color if it was developed that way, according to an AP story. The Kindle (both old and new) screen displays black and white only.
Ian Freed, the vice president for the Kindle, says that Amazon has been working on the application for several months. Freed said Amazon sees the software as a way to introduce non-Kindle owners to the Amazon e-book reader, potentially turning them into Kindle buyers. It also gives Kindle owners an additional way to read their content while on the go, he noted. More importantly, one would think, it will increase the sales volume of the e-books themselves.
This is a very important development for both Apple and Amazon. It gives Amazon a huge new revenue channel for e-book sales. It give potential iPhone and Touch buyers a new and important reason to purchase an Apple mobile device. It is the best of both worlds for both companies. Watch this space for a review of this new Kindle software for the iPhone and Touch.
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