Walmart and Rakuten Announce New Strategic Alliance

[ZodWallop]

I'm happy for Kobo getting back in to the US market. It will be nice to handle Kobos in person, etc. But in the past Walmart sold Kindles and Nooks. Not sure what they think will be different this time around.

The book cards that are causing so many questions: I can almost guarantee it will be a Kobo gift card rather than a code tied to a specific book. 'Offering a wider selection' is happy talk for 'browse online.'

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by kcladyz

Well I am happy that I can finally buy a KOBO device and see one in store before buying. I only wish they will sell at independent book stores as well so to help them compete with B&N and Amazon

The problem as I see it is you go into an independent bookstore, see Kobos for sale, buy one, and then you don't go back because you've switched to reading eBooks. The bookstore loses out in the long run.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The problem as I see it is you go into an independent bookstore, see Kobos for sale, buy one, and then you don't go back because you've switched to reading eBooks. The bookstore loses out in the long run.

I agree. At least B&N sells their own device linked to their store, so either way they get money.

[bgalbrecht]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

The problem as I see it is you go into an independent bookstore, see Kobos for sale, buy one, and then you don't go back because you've switched to reading eBooks. The bookstore loses out in the long run.

I think Kobo had some sort of affiliate program for the independent bookstores so that when you bought ebooks, the bookstore got a cut.

[ZodWallop]

Can I say now is the time for Kobo to roll out a firmware update offering the Aura One's integrated Overdrive for all their models? Then make a big deal about it when they start selling at Walmart.

[GreyWolfsGhost]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

I'm happy for Kobo getting back in to the US market. It will be nice to handle Kobos in person, etc. But in the past Walmart sold Kindles and Nooks. Not sure what they think will be different this time around.

The book cards that are causing so many questions: I can almost guarantee it will be a Kobo gift card rather than a code tied to a specific book. 'Offering a wider selection' is happy talk for 'browse online.'

I recall seeing book cards at Wal-Mart here in Canada. They had the cover of a book printed on them. It looked like they were for a specific book.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by GreyWolfsGhost

I recall seeing book cards at Wal-Mart here in Canada. They had the cover of a book printed on them. It looked like they where for a specific book.

I of course don't run a business. But that sounds stupid and wasteful.

[PeterT]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Can I say now is the time for Kobo to roll out a firmware update offering the Aura One's integrated Overdrive for all their models? Then make a big deal about it when they start selling at Walmart.

I think it would be more likely to see new devices with that ability rather than updated older devices. This is however my opinion.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

[GlennD]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

I of course don't run a business. But that sounds stupid and wasteful.

I suspect the average Walmart consumer is far more likely to make an impulse purchase of a book when they are actually buying the book they can see in the store.

Gift cards for a book store may appeal to you and I (and I'm sure those will be available too), but for the majority of consumers seeing the latest "50 shades" novel cover is a bigger draw than a generic card.

[Calenorn]

Kobo would be wise to develop a super low-priced intro level reader for the WalMart Market.

[jhowell]

A card for a specific book is a nice idea for gifting someone a book. It lets you give something physical.

Hopefully they will work it like Amazon, where the book you gift is only a suggestion and as a recipient you can exchange it easily for something else if you want.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

I'm happy for Kobo getting back in to the US market. It will be nice to handle Kobos in person, etc. But in the past Walmart sold Kindles and Nooks. Not sure what they think will be different this time around. ...

Walmart is doing more than selling eReaders now, they're becoming part of the Kobo infrastructure (co-branding an app with Kobo). They understand how important it is to compete with Amazon – and eBooks are a big part of Amazon. The last time they sold eReader devices they were just selling other company's devices, this time they hope to use this alliance to directly compete with Amazon. Walmart's new(ish) CEO understands how important this has become. (Walmart is slowly building their online web site to compete with Amazon, including two day delivery.) I don't know if this will work or not, but Walmart is one of the top sellers of paper books in the country, I think they'll be committed to this Kobo alliance.

[Apparition B5]

I wonder if this will be just with Walmart, or if it will involve Jet.com as well.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by Alohamora

Last I knew, you can't buy Kindle books through the ios Kindle app.

Maybe that's why Kobo wants these in-store cards, for the ithing owners who won't be able to purchase directly in the ios app. (Although they could through a web browser)

Sorry, left the not off in the original post - Amazon does not pay a "Apple Tax" on non digial content. I've corrected it in the original post.

An ebook is digital content, which is why Amazon does not sell them on either of their iOS apps (Kindle app or Amazon app). If they tried to sell it, they would have to pay Apple for in app purchase. Since a Kindle paper is a physical product rather than digital, they do sale that and do not have to pay Apple a percentage. I hope that is clearer than my initial post.

[pwalker8]

Originally Posted by rcentros

Walmart is doing more than selling eReaders now, they're becoming part of the Kobo infrastructure (co-branding an app with Kobo). They understand how important it is to compete with Amazon – and eBooks are a big part of Amazon. The last time they sold eReader devices they were just selling other company's devices, this time they hope to use this alliance to directly compete with Amazon. Walmart's new(ish) CEO understands how important this has become. (Walmart is slowly building their online web site to compete with Amazon, including two day delivery.) I don't know if this will work or not, but Walmart is one of the top sellers of paper books in the country, I think they'll be committed to this Kobo alliance.

I used the Walmart web site to order a birthday present for my nephew back in August. It seemed a bit weird at the time. I got the impression that they were shipping it from the nearest store that had the item in stock.

Competition is good. I don't really know if Walmart is the first company that most online shoppers think about. I have to wonder a bit if they are paying Google to make sure they are near the top of search results rather than Amazon.