Sony's Response To New Kindle: Not Chasing "Cheapest E-Reader" Title

m-reader · 07-30-2010, 06:05 AM

http://blogs.forbes.com/velocity/201...-reader-title/

Quote:

“Pricing is one consideration in the dedicated reading device marketplace, but Sony won’t sacrifice the quality and design we’re bringing book lovers to lay claim to the cheapest eReader," said Phil Lubell, Sony Electronics' vice president of digital reading. He added, "Our global customers expect to get the best digital book reading experience and we’re concentrated on delivering that by investing in Sony’s award-winning design and original digital reading enhancements, such as eBook library borrowing and the only full touch-screen on the market.”

As a Sony customer all I can say is "Hey Sony, pull the other one, it's got brass bells on!"

dura · 07-30-2010, 06:17 AM

Well, I think they have a point; my metal darkblue PRS-300 IMO looks and feel classier then the other plastic 5 inch readers available now. I like that and I'm glad I will still have the choice in the future to spent more and get better hardware.

Graham · 07-30-2010, 06:45 AM

I think they've got a few problems with this approach, but it depends on what new machines they bring out over the next few months.

I'm going to concentrate on what I expect the average consumer will think, not what we here think about closed vs open formats, etc.

At the moment (prior to any new Sony releases):

The availability of a 6" reader with wifi from Amazon at £109 is likely to dent their ability to sell the 5" PRS-300 at £124. Particularly as the Kindle has 4GB of storage and the PRS-300 has 512MB.

With the arrival of Amazon's UK eBook store the other UK offerings are going to get blown away by the number of available titles. Waterstone's is great, it's got less than 30,000 eBook titles, including the free ones. Amazon are going to launch with 400,000 excluding free titles. Sony are going to get a lot of confused customers saying "What do you mean I can't buy books from Amazon?"

Sony have a gap in their range for a non-touch screen 6" device. I spent a short time in the stores comparing the Touch with the 300 and the Elonex 511EB and it was clear that the non-touch screen devices were more legible. Not everyone will spot that but plenty will.

I was going to compare the Daily edition with the iPad and forthcoming Android tablets, but I can't find anyone selling it anymore. It's not even featured in the Sony Reader range on the UK Sony site. Did I miss that being discontinued?

Graham

Barcey · 07-30-2010, 07:02 AM

I don't believe that the price war has ended with Amazon's latest announcement. The kindle, nook and kobo readers can all be sold below cost with the expectation of making profit off of the 30% profit they're guaranteed in ebook sales.

I suspect that Sony isn't driving enough sales through their own ebook store to get into that battle. Sony's response makes sense but I hope they can deliver.

rogue_librarian · 07-30-2010, 07:08 AM

I wonder who'll be the first to adopt some kind of recurring payment scheme. You know, give the reader away for free in return for buying a book a month for three years or something like that.

emai7s2 · 07-30-2010, 07:34 AM

I hope Sony continues to develop its line of PRS-600/PRS-900 readers - I am a big fan of touchscreens, and I don't see many firms other than Sony developing this technology. A new PRS-900 with an improved screen would get my money.

fumanchu314159 · 07-30-2010, 07:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rogue_librarian

I wonder who'll be the first to adopt some kind of recurring payment scheme. You know, give the reader away for free in return for buying a book a month for three years or something like that.

Or better, like emusic subscriptions have done (e.g. Spotify), pay a monthly fee to read whatever you want...without keeping your own copy. What would you pay for that?

darknessangel · 07-30-2010, 07:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Graham

...I was going to compare the Daily edition with the iPad and forthcoming Android tablets, but I can't find anyone selling it anymore. It's not even featured in the Sony Reader range on the UK Sony site. Did I miss that being discontinued?...

Afaik the Daily Edition is sold only in the US (yeah... I learned that at a local sony store also along the fact that ebook readers are not sold in Belgium u_u).

And yeah... well I think Sony's been always all about the hardware. And I really like the solid feel of my prs-505. But if Sony's all about the hardware with ebooks too... they are disapointing heavily on the 9,X" reader department =(

GJMS

Lilly · 07-30-2010, 08:01 AM

If you think about, their PRS-900 (Daily Edition) is the best priced out the high-end readers right now so Sony is playing games. They should be emphasizing this fact in the USA. It's now priced at $249 (so you are getting an extra 1.1 inch screen, touchscreen, cover, hard case) all for an extra $50 or $60 it would cost you to buy a 3G Nook or Kindle. Now they are giving you an extra battery with your purchase until September. The screen of the PRS-900 is not as bad as PRS-600, so they should put the new screen technology in and add wifi and sell the PRS-900 everywhere.

EowynCarter · 07-30-2010, 08:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fumanchu314159

Or better, like emusic subscriptions have done (e.g. Spotify), pay a monthly fee to read whatever you want...without keeping your own copy. What would you pay for that?

Spotify suscriber

Yeah why not, admiting it have enough choise (and I don't need to buy books in addition not in the subscription).
And if the prises are responsable, and DRM not a pain.

Geppetto · 07-30-2010, 08:21 AM

If they don't launch new models very quickly, they're finished.

banjobama · 07-30-2010, 08:37 AM

Yay Sony. I admit, I am biased. At my house we have a Bravia TV, a PlayStation 2 and 3, a PSP, a Vaio F-series laptop and, of course, the Reader.

Sony never make the "cheapest" anything, so I am not surprised by this statement of theirs. I'm excited to see what Reader they will come out with next, though.

Kali Yuga · 07-30-2010, 08:46 AM

Very hard to say what will happen with Sony without seeing any real numbers.

It is possible though that they are losing market share, but still selling more units as the general market for ebooks grows. However, in terms of press they are largely out of the game -- seems like it's Amazon and Apple for the moment.

m-reader · 07-30-2010, 09:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by banjobama

Yay Sony. I admit, I am biased. At my house we have a Bravia TV, a PlayStation 2 and 3, a PSP, a Vaio F-series laptop and, of course, the Reader.

Sony never make the "cheapest" anything, so I am not surprised by this statement of theirs. I'm excited to see what Reader they will come out with next, though.

Quote:

Originally Posted by dura

Well, I think they have a point; my metal darkblue PRS-300 IMO looks and feel classier then the other plastic 5 inch readers available now. I like that and I'm glad I will still have the choice in the future to spent more and get better hardware.

I may have been a bit hard on Sony in my comment there. I love Sony gear too, and I do agree that they shouldn't be chasing the rock bottom price either. I am also happy to pay premium for quality. Sony's build quality is next to none. I only hope they improve on screen quality. I would personally gladly sacrifice the touch capability for better screen contrast.
I really do hope Sony comes up with new generation of e-readers soon. What they offered in this original article is nothing but marketing fluff.

mikij · 07-30-2010, 09:03 AM

My PRS-600 looks very classy and in the same time its construction is robust (not the cheap plastic as other readers).
However, the selection of books in Sony Store is its limiting factor.
IMO, with a better screen (contrast), this model would have been great and no cheap competitor could have beaten them (in spite of price).
I agree with banjobama - my home is full of Sony products, too (my TV, my MP3 player, the computer I am writing on, DVD player) and these are long-lasting and quality products. I respect their decision.

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07-30-2010, 06:17 AM	#2
dura Groupie Posts: 174 Karma: 1062434 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Netherlands Device: Kobo H2O (2th edition), Kindle PW11	Well, I think they have a point; my metal darkblue PRS-300 IMO looks and feel classier then the other plastic 5 inch readers available now. I like that and I'm glad I will still have the choice in the future to spent more and get better hardware.

07-30-2010, 06:45 AM	#3
Graham Wizard Posts: 2,742 Karma: 32912427 Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: North Yorkshire, UK Device: Kobo H20, Pixel 2, Samsung Chromebook Plus	I think they've got a few problems with this approach, but it depends on what new machines they bring out over the next few months. I'm going to concentrate on what I expect the average consumer will think, not what we here think about closed vs open formats, etc. At the moment (prior to any new Sony releases): The availability of a 6" reader with wifi from Amazon at £109 is likely to dent their ability to sell the 5" PRS-300 at £124. Particularly as the Kindle has 4GB of storage and the PRS-300 has 512MB. With the arrival of Amazon's UK eBook store the other UK offerings are going to get blown away by the number of available titles. Waterstone's is great, it's got less than 30,000 eBook titles, including the free ones. Amazon are going to launch with 400,000 excluding free titles. Sony are going to get a lot of confused customers saying "What do you mean I can't buy books from Amazon?" Sony have a gap in their range for a non-touch screen 6" device. I spent a short time in the stores comparing the Touch with the 300 and the Elonex 511EB and it was clear that the non-touch screen devices were more legible. Not everyone will spot that but plenty will. I was going to compare the Daily edition with the iPad and forthcoming Android tablets, but I can't find anyone selling it anymore. It's not even featured in the Sony Reader range on the UK Sony site. Did I miss that being discontinued? Graham

07-30-2010, 07:02 AM	#4
Barcey Wizard Posts: 1,531 Karma: 8059866 Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Canada Device: Kobo H2O / Aura HD / Glo / iPad3	I don't believe that the price war has ended with Amazon's latest announcement. The kindle, nook and kobo readers can all be sold below cost with the expectation of making profit off of the 30% profit they're guaranteed in ebook sales. I suspect that Sony isn't driving enough sales through their own ebook store to get into that battle. Sony's response makes sense but I hope they can deliver.

07-30-2010, 07:08 AM	#5
rogue_librarian Guru Posts: 973 Karma: 4269175 Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Europe Device: Pocketbook Basic 613	I wonder who'll be the first to adopt some kind of recurring payment scheme. You know, give the reader away for free in return for buying a book a month for three years or something like that.

07-30-2010, 07:34 AM	#6
emai7s2 Connoisseur Posts: 97 Karma: 128170 Join Date: Sep 2008 Device: Palm & PPC	I hope Sony continues to develop its line of PRS-600/PRS-900 readers - I am a big fan of touchscreens, and I don't see many firms other than Sony developing this technology. A new PRS-900 with an improved screen would get my money.

07-30-2010, 08:01 AM	#9
Lilly Guru Posts: 688 Karma: 2090 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: Sony PRS-505, PRS-900 & PRS-950, Amazon Kindle2	If you think about, their PRS-900 (Daily Edition) is the best priced out the high-end readers right now so Sony is playing games. They should be emphasizing this fact in the USA. It's now priced at $249 (so you are getting an extra 1.1 inch screen, touchscreen, cover, hard case) all for an extra $50 or $60 it would cost you to buy a 3G Nook or Kindle. Now they are giving you an extra battery with your purchase until September. The screen of the PRS-900 is not as bad as PRS-600, so they should put the new screen technology in and add wifi and sell the PRS-900 everywhere.

07-30-2010, 08:21 AM	#11
Geppetto Addict Posts: 232 Karma: 748 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: Sony PRS600, Cybook, Hanvon N520, Sony PRS300, Onyx Boox, Kindle 3	If they don't launch new models very quickly, they're finished.

07-30-2010, 08:37 AM	#12
banjobama Busy Read'n Posts: 980 Karma: 5039283 Join Date: Feb 2010 Location: Auburn, WA Device: Pocketbook Touch Lux 5	Yay Sony. I admit, I am biased. At my house we have a Bravia TV, a PlayStation 2 and 3, a PSP, a Vaio F-series laptop and, of course, the Reader. Sony never make the "cheapest" anything, so I am not surprised by this statement of theirs. I'm excited to see what Reader they will come out with next, though.

07-30-2010, 08:46 AM	#13
Kali Yuga Professional Contrarian Posts: 2,045 Karma: 3289631 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: Kindle 4 No Touchie	Very hard to say what will happen with Sony without seeing any real numbers. It is possible though that they are losing market share, but still selling more units as the general market for ebooks grows. However, in terms of press they are largely out of the game -- seems like it's Amazon and Apple for the moment.

07-30-2010, 09:03 AM	#15
mikij Connoisseur Posts: 98 Karma: 161 Join Date: May 2010 Location: Quebec, Canada Device: PRS-600	My PRS-600 looks very classy and in the same time its construction is robust (not the cheap plastic as other readers). However, the selection of books in Sony Store is its limiting factor. IMO, with a better screen (contrast), this model would have been great and no cheap competitor could have beaten them (in spite of price). I agree with banjobama - my home is full of Sony products, too (my TV, my MP3 player, the computer I am writing on, DVD player) and these are long-lasting and quality products. I respect their decision.