Quote:
Originally Posted by Sonist
I really, really doubt it has anything to do with licensing. Or with difficulties implementing PDFs into the Kindle.
|
Yes, I doubt Adobe would charge for the SDK on the basis of which features are implemented by the licensee.
Amazon licensed the Adobe Reader Mobile SDK, using which it is certainly possible to do more than what they are doing with PDF (as Sony and other licensees demonstrate). And certainly not including the SDK's ePub and Adobe Content Server support seems a business-driven decision designed to limit proliferation of competing formats. But it could also be in part that they could not afford to take on the risk of dropping in so many features all at once.
Bezos' recent statements that Kindle hardware is 'separate' from Kindle eBook business, 'dedicated to the best ebook reader experience' leave hope that as ebook reader market becomes more competitive - and let us all hope that it does - that the Kindle hardware team will decide they need to broaden ebook format support and improve PDF support in particular. The Kindle eBook business, undoubtedly the more profitable of the two, will just have to deal with it by offering the best value, convenience and selection for Kindle customers.
I wish they'd do this sooner (e.g. firmware updates) rather than later (the next Kindle device). But it seems unlikely.