Quote:
Originally Posted by koland
Only because Kobo essentially got a law pushed thru forcing some of the publishers to use them exclusively, from what I can tell.
|
When I first got my Kobo I read a pile of web articles on it, including several Canadian ones, and have seen not even a single suggestion about this. Got a link?
Then there's Amazon's fight to not collect sales taxes at source (yes, every Kindle customer in Canada who doesn't voluntarily remit sales taxes is a lawbreaker, thanks to Amazon), which is debatably an advantage as it makes their books appear (however illegitimately) cheaper at checkout.
Quote:
|
As for devices - they are a US company and someone has to be second.
|
Sure, but the thing's been out for four months, and we don't have even a suggestion of a release date yet, let alone a release, internationally. Kobo and Sony manage worldwide releases of their e-readers.
Quote:
|
As for 3G - I can see why they don't want to ship those outside the US and severely limit the ones they do. Roaming data charges are obscene in most countries, but in the EU, especially (at least, for cells that are registered to the US). Their long distance charges are just as bad on land lines (which is why a booming business in reverse charge calling has flourished in the US, even before VOIP.
|
Canada is not Europe, as long distance and roaming is cheaper here than in Europe (and landlines are *way* cheaper here). Overall, telecommunications are cheaper in Canada than in Europe by far. And it's not a roaming charge if it's a Canadian Kindle being used in Canada. And Canada does have the 3G Kindle Keyboard still being sold here, so the 3G issue hasn't traditionally been a problem here for Amazon.
Quote:
|
Keep in mind, also, that for a US company to release "a computer" to a non-US market, there are both logistical (have to have enough supply) and legal (export of technology laws, even more draconian after 9/11) hoops to jump thru.
|
Supply issues were legitimate at Christmas if it was an unexpected hit, but four months after launch Amazon should at least be able to predict a launch quarter, if not a launch date, by now. Even if it was a far-flung one.
As for logistical issues, this is Canada and the U.S. we're talking about. We have not one, but two free trade agreements between our two countries. :P
Quote:
|
Another problem with the Kindle Fire - a lot of the content it is designed to consume, Amazon doesn' t have a license to provide outside the US. Books yes (and the web), but generally no so much on videos (and possibly not on music). So, it would be crippled outside the US (just as it can be for US owners when outside the US).
|
Sure, but it's not like the Fire is useless without those additional services. When Apple launched the iPod in Canada, they did it without a corresponding iTunes release. You could only use the iPod with your own MP3 collection, you couldn't buy *any* content from Apple. That didn't stop the iPod from being a success in Canada.
I agree with you that this might be a publisher-driven promotion for Lord of the Rings, and (if so) not something you could lay the blame at Amazon's feet for. I was curious whether they were being published by different publishers in each country so visited Amazon to check it out. It didn't (at least not prominently) list who the publisher was, but did note the trilogy wasn't available in Canada and offered a link to searching for things available in Canada. I clicked that, and saw that the Kindle Fire was in the list! I wondered if I was completely wrong about everything I had just typed, so added one to my cart and proceeded to checkout, curious if it would let me. It said it couldn't ship to my address. Nice work, people. :P