[Poppa1956]

I was going to point oout, as others before me have, that you can already get $100 off Kindle, or any other device (iPod, Zune) that can play Audible audiolbooks, IF you subscribe to Audible for at least one year at time of purchase.
If this is more than a rumor, it is conceivable that Amazon could have an eBook club, with the ebooks, or even printed books, purchased from Amazon. As a basic business model, it is not unreasonable. Yes, they will be subsidizing the hardware through eBook sales, but they've already proved their marketing abilities,
Despite my misgivings about being roped into a contract, I would actually give this serious consideration, especially if I could figure out how to make it a tax-deductible business expense.
While neither the B&N Nook, Sony, Kobo, nor any other eReader to come down the pike is likely to be the dreaded "Kindle Killer," each and every one of them takes a Market share. I love my Nook, but realistically, it has a long way to go to sell more units than Kindle has in place. However, when you combine the numbers of non-Kindle eReaders, you can see how the big A might want to try some new strategeries (yeah, I said "stategeries," deal.) to make their product more appealing. Having a perceived price point of $59, and making the difference over a year or so, while creating a habit is the consumers of purchasing at least one or two books a month from Amazon (Sales that could have gone to B&N, Borders, Sony, Kobo, EZRead, or Bob the Weather-Cat) make Amazon more profitable, and their competators less profitable in the long run. If they do it right, and I see no reason they wouldn't, they will continue to score high marks in customer service, increasing word-of-mouth sales,
Amazon knows that they need to provide their customers with what they want, and they obviously know what their customers want.