This is worth a look;
Details
Of special interest is this: "Improved cost/performance to enable mass market distribution"
And this: "Rich media content: larger e-paper displays that will be more compatible for news content and images"
At the moment eink is strongly biased towards smaller displays, which is fine for novels, but not a lot else.
Colour is essential for Magazines, even my favourites on Archaeology and history, Newspapers need large display spaces and a wide variety of technical and other matter are best suited to A4, serious works of non-fiction tend to fall within A5.
Ideally the price needs to come down so that it reasonable to own a few devices, including pocket readers.
If the French get it right, the design, the price and the content, with this large investment they get an edge way above anything else offering.
I am a great believer in Government investment in socially important production, it would be ironic that the second print revolution also signaled the end to surrendering everything to business interests (perhaps represented by the Kindle).
Anyhow in anticipation I will begin my French lessons.