Amazon inks deal with New York City public schools

AnemicOak · 04-21-2016, 11:13 PM

Amazon Lands Major Account: New York City Public Schools
http://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/b...c-schools.html

Quote:

Amazon has struck a major deal with the New York City public school district, the country's largest, to provide e-books to its students. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal the deal, worth $30 million, will see the e-tailer selling titles through an internal marketplace. The agreement will not see students using Amazon's hardware, such as its suite of Kindle devices.

There are over 1 million students in the New York City public school system and now, with the Department of Education having signed the three-year agreement, Amazon could make upwards of $34.5 million on the contract, which also has the option of a two-year extension.

New York City schools tap Amazon for e-books
http://www.engadget.com/2016/04/21/n...mazon-e-books/

Quote:

Stepping into the classrooms of the country's largest school district is a big win for Amazon, which has been making strides to keep up with competition from Apple and Google in the education space. Last month, the online retail giant also quietly announced a "revolutionary" platform that promised "free and unlimited access to first-class course materials."

darryl · 04-21-2016, 11:59 PM

Interesting that hardware like KIndle's is not included in the deal. Does this get Amazon off the hook, at least for a while, on accessibility? Presumably it seems students will be able to read on Android tablets and other devices. In this case Amazon only needs to provide acceptable accessibility features in its software. Mind you, it does make sense for Amazon to make its Kindle's and Fire's as accessible as possible, and I'm sure they will be working on this. But I'd say that it has bought some time and allowed this contract to proceed. I suspect Amazon will want to make its hardware part of the next deal!

Barbara1955 · 04-22-2016, 12:38 AM

Most likely using Apps. Sad I know Amazon is in the business to make money But be nice if they donated the e-books. He did brag that he made $200+ Million dollars last year. Just MHO

tubemonkey · 04-22-2016, 07:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by darryl

Mind you, it does make sense for Amazon to make its Kindle's and Fire's as accessible as possible, and I'm sure they will be working on this. But I'd say that it has bought some time and allowed this contract to proceed. I suspect Amazon will want to make its hardware part of the next deal!

For accessibility, Kindles would need audio.

darryl · 04-22-2016, 09:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tubemonkey

For accessibility, Kindles would need audio.

Agreed. I think the education market is lucrative enough for Amazon to look at this. I don't expect we will see built-in speakers in e-ink Kindles unless really necessary, but I do think we will see tts, bluetooth and support for Audiobooks. I also expect that some use will be made of Alexa. Leaving aside e-ink readers, a Fire Tablet with Alexa may prove very attractive so far as accessibility is concerned. And no doubt Amazon could do it at a very attractive price.

jhowell · 04-22-2016, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by darryl

Agreed. I think the education market is lucrative enough for Amazon to look at this. I don't expect we will see built-in speakers in e-ink Kindles unless really necessary, but I do think we will see tts, bluetooth and support for Audiobooks. I also expect that some use will be made of Alexa. Leaving aside e-ink readers, a Fire Tablet with Alexa may prove very attractive so far as accessibility is concerned. And no doubt Amazon could do it at a very attractive price.

I highly doubt that Amazon would add audio, even bluetooth, to Kindles for the education market. Fire tablets make much more sense. They are more durable, cheaper and already support color, audio and video.

HarryT · 04-22-2016, 11:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by darryl

Agreed. I think the education market is lucrative enough for Amazon to look at this. I don't expect we will see built-in speakers in e-ink Kindles unless really necessary, but I do think we will see tts, bluetooth and support for Audiobooks.

I disagree. The newest Kindle in the line-up doesn't have these features, and I see no reason to suppose that future ones will. If you want audio or TTS, Amazon will be happy to sell you a Fire tablet which has these features.

MGlitch · 04-22-2016, 12:17 PM

I'd just point out Bezos wants the eink line to be as slim and lightweight as possible. Adding TTS and/or bluetooth would add weight, and in the case of TTS possibly add an odd lump for the headphone jack depending on placement.

It's something Amazon -could- do, but given their trend with the eink line I don't think they will do it.

tubemonkey · 04-22-2016, 01:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MGlitch

I'd just point out Bezos wants the eink line to be as slim and lightweight as possible. Adding TTS and/or bluetooth would add weight, and in the case of TTS possibly add an odd lump for the headphone jack depending on placement.

It's something Amazon -could- do, but given their trend with the eink line I don't think they will do it.

He could stuff all of it in the battery-case. Problem solved. Want audio? connect the case.

darryl · 04-22-2016, 02:10 PM

I agree a suitably featured Fire Tablet is the logical and most likely device for Amazon to push. That does not exclude an e-ink option is out of the question. If there is a demand for such an option in education then it seems clear that accessibility will be an important consideration. Aside from education, it seems clear there is some demand generally for Audio. Some posters here view the Kindle Keyboard with nostalgia and lament the loss of Audio in later models. I admit to some surprise at not seeing it featured in the Oasis.

The main reason why I think we may see audio support in future Kindles is Alexa. I think Amazon is going to use Alexa on just about everything, and there is clearly a role for it in an ereader, even an e-ink one.

Finally, I cannot see either internal speakers or a headphone jack of any sort on the device itself, though tubemonkey's comment about using the case is an intriguing possibility if they did want to do this. But what I am expecting is Bluetooth.support. There has been speculation based on FCC filings that the Oasis has a wifi chip with Bluetooth support included. Apparently this is common and does not mean that the Bluetooth will necessarily be used.

MGlitch · 04-22-2016, 04:10 PM

When given the choice of a 50$ tablet that already serves those needs, or a 100+ dollar eink device which sort of does them, I think the education system will go for the cheaper option. Amazon will likely push that as well since it gives them a portal to sell more types of content to the owner.

Phogg · 04-22-2016, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

I disagree. The newest Kindle in the line-up doesn't have these features, and I see no reason to suppose that future ones will. If you want audio or TTS, Amazon will be happy to sell you a Fire tablet which has these features.

And Onyx will sell you an e-ink device (you will need bluetooth earphones or speakers) with these features.

JSWolf · 04-22-2016, 05:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MGlitch

I'd just point out Bezos wants the eink line to be as slim and lightweight as possible. Adding TTS and/or bluetooth would add weight, and in the case of TTS possibly add an odd lump for the headphone jack depending on placement.

It's something Amazon -could- do, but given their trend with the eink line I don't think they will do it.

If Bezos truly wants Kindles to be as light as possible, then he should be doing away with 3g. That would save weight.

Cinisajoy · 04-22-2016, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JSWolf

If Bezos truly wants Kindles to be as light as possible, then he should be doing away with 3g. That would save weight.

I was surprised how big a 3g card was.

AnemicOak · 04-22-2016, 08:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MGlitch

When given the choice of a 50$ tablet that already serves those needs, or a 100+ dollar eink device which sort of does them, I think the education system will go for the cheaper option.

Not only that, but many school districts are now issuing tablets or chromebooks to their students (not sure if NYC does) which would already have accessibility options and be able to read Kindle content through apps and browsers. The tablet option would be overall much more durable than eInk as well.

Quote:

Amazon will likely push that as well since it gives them a portal to sell more types of content to the owner.

They probably would push it. Unsure how schools will feel about issuing folks an Amazon vending machine, but maybe...

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04-21-2016, 11:59 PM	#2
darryl Wizard Posts: 3,108 Karma: 60231510 Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Aura H2O, Kindle Oasis, Huwei Ascend Mate 7	Interesting that hardware like KIndle's is not included in the deal. Does this get Amazon off the hook, at least for a while, on accessibility? Presumably it seems students will be able to read on Android tablets and other devices. In this case Amazon only needs to provide acceptable accessibility features in its software. Mind you, it does make sense for Amazon to make its Kindle's and Fire's as accessible as possible, and I'm sure they will be working on this. But I'd say that it has bought some time and allowed this contract to proceed. I suspect Amazon will want to make its hardware part of the next deal!

04-22-2016, 12:38 AM	#3
Barbara1955 Non-Techy Posts: 4,455 Karma: 15499273 Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: WV---USA Device: Samsung Cell Phone & Amazon Fires & Kobo eReaders	Most likely using Apps. Sad I know Amazon is in the business to make money But be nice if they donated the e-books. He did brag that he made $200+ Million dollars last year. Just MHO

04-22-2016, 12:17 PM	#8
MGlitch Wizard Posts: 2,855 Karma: 22003124 Join Date: Aug 2014 Device: Kobo Forma, Kobo Sage, Kobo Libra 2	I'd just point out Bezos wants the eink line to be as slim and lightweight as possible. Adding TTS and/or bluetooth would add weight, and in the case of TTS possibly add an odd lump for the headphone jack depending on placement. It's something Amazon -could- do, but given their trend with the eink line I don't think they will do it.

04-22-2016, 02:10 PM	#10
darryl Wizard Posts: 3,108 Karma: 60231510 Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Australia Device: Kobo Aura H2O, Kindle Oasis, Huwei Ascend Mate 7	I agree a suitably featured Fire Tablet is the logical and most likely device for Amazon to push. That does not exclude an e-ink option is out of the question. If there is a demand for such an option in education then it seems clear that accessibility will be an important consideration. Aside from education, it seems clear there is some demand generally for Audio. Some posters here view the Kindle Keyboard with nostalgia and lament the loss of Audio in later models. I admit to some surprise at not seeing it featured in the Oasis. The main reason why I think we may see audio support in future Kindles is Alexa. I think Amazon is going to use Alexa on just about everything, and there is clearly a role for it in an ereader, even an e-ink one. Finally, I cannot see either internal speakers or a headphone jack of any sort on the device itself, though tubemonkey's comment about using the case is an intriguing possibility if they did want to do this. But what I am expecting is Bluetooth.support. There has been speculation based on FCC filings that the Oasis has a wifi chip with Bluetooth support included. Apparently this is common and does not mean that the Bluetooth will necessarily be used.

04-22-2016, 04:10 PM	#11
MGlitch Wizard Posts: 2,855 Karma: 22003124 Join Date: Aug 2014 Device: Kobo Forma, Kobo Sage, Kobo Libra 2	When given the choice of a 50$ tablet that already serves those needs, or a 100+ dollar eink device which sort of does them, I think the education system will go for the cheaper option. Amazon will likely push that as well since it gives them a portal to sell more types of content to the owner.