Quote:
Originally Posted by Catlady
True enough--for their first e-reader. The problem comes in when the Kindle owners are buying a second device--perhaps the Nook Color or another tablet-type e-reader, because they'd like to have color--and discover that their Amazon-purchased books can't be read on their new gadget. That's the wake-up call.
|
Or when someone buys a Nook or Sony and adds a Kindle.
I guess my biggest problem with this discussion is that the onus has been placed on Amazon to change.
I don't know what Sony used when it first started but it was not EPub. When Amazon entered the market they choose Mobi. I think that I have read that Sony changed to EPub after the Kindle was released or just before. When BN and Kobo entered the market they could have selected a Mobi format and choose EPub even though they knew that Kindle was the largest e-reader in the US at the time. Given that Nook is made for the US market, for the time being, BN chose a format that differed from the largest e-reader in their market. Kobo is available in the US and Canada, so Borders choose a format that differed from the biggest competitor.
So why is the onus on Amazon? My guess is that Borders and BN choose EPub precisely because they didn't want their customers buying from Amazon. They are less worried about the average customer leaving their e-book store to buy books from BN or Borders but know that people shop at Amazon for many items and would go there for e-books if they could.
Yes, I know about the international market. Mobi is going to grow as the Kindle grows overseas. But that is not what BN was thinking about when it entered the market. If it was then that is because BN plans an international launch and is moving really, really slowly on that. This is allowing the Kindle to gain a bigger foothold outside the US. I have a feeling the Nook would do really well internationally, inexpensive, functions well, and EPub would be great marketing tools.
So Amazon is the problem because competitors entering the market later choose a different format then the largest seller in the markets they are targeting.