Amazon Kindle goes international - Page 14

Ea · 10-08-2009, 06:29 AM

I took a look at prices and availability of books by, among a few others, the following authors: Edward Rutherfurd, Antonia Byatt, David Liss, Marian Keyes, Kevin Crossley-Holland, Umberto Eco, Lawrence Norfolk, Tracy Chevalier. Those that I knew weren't available from Fictionwise og BoB, weren't available from Amazon.com either. That was what I expected.

Only a few books of the ones i searched for were available from Europe, and except for one, they were cheaper at Waterstones and WHSmith. Only "Wolf Hall" by Hilary Mankel, a recently published book that won the Man Booker price, came out 2 USD cheaper at Amazon.com. Weee! (No, not really.)

The only reason to buy a Kindle as far as I can see, is the convenience of buying and downloading directly to the device. Books doesn't appear (to me) to be cheaper, and there are not a wider range of books available than in existing online, European, stores, but I hope this situation might push the publishers to make more titles available outside USA.

I checked the price, just the Kindle, without the cover, came to 375 USD for me, including shipping and taxes.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jlick

...
My thoughts are that this is still a useful alternative to those with no US credit card to be able to participate in the ebook market. It beats paying almost $10 shipping to buy a physical book from amazon.com with 3-6 weeks international shipping. For me, I have a US credit card so I think I'll just stick to downloading on my computer for now and save the two bucks.
...

Well... Yes, but it's not a good comparison, because far more p-books are avaliable via European sellers as well - and if you shop around a bit rather than just rely on Amazon, you can usually find a good price.

sony_fox · 10-08-2009, 07:17 AM

Regarding the number of books availabe - 280k or so for the Kindle. Does anyone know what the comparable EPUB number is? higher lower or about the same?

HarryT · 10-08-2009, 07:19 AM

It's difficult to make a direct comparison, because an unknown amount of what's in the Kindle store is self-published content, rather than "real" books.

neilmarr · 10-08-2009, 07:34 AM

Right you are, Harry. Reduced-risk selection (recreational reading time is precious) is becoming more and more of a problem as the doors swing wider to allow in so many truly useless 'authors' -- especially in ebook and PoD forms. From the other side of the fence, though, there are self-published authors out there who produce gems but are swamped by nonsense and tarred with the same 'self-publish-slush' brush. And, of course, the professionally published and well evaluated *Lost Symbol* tops best-seller charts everywhere. Reading is a very hit-and-miss pursuit, eh? Cheers. Neil

techsavy · 10-08-2009, 07:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Solicitous

Well hang on a second, if I buy a Kindle and have it shipped to here in Australia where I live, I should according to that statement not pay a $1.99 surcharge to download the book as I am not travelling abroad, I am merely using the device in my country of residence. If I travel abroad to another country then yes, I agree that I should pay, but not when I am sitting at home and not travelling abroad. Perhaps they should state that OUTSIDE of the USA you pay $1.99 to download a book.

For Americans there only is one country. everything else is abroad or overseas. They have that limitation...

inuyashaohki · 10-08-2009, 07:49 AM

my decision is clear: I will register mine in the US and use it in Germany...

790.000 Ebooks vs 290.000 (and to be honest the 290.000 looked like crap)
If I need to download wireless from Germany than the 1.99 are clearly no roadblocker for me anymore.

techsavy · 10-08-2009, 08:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgmueller

To summarise my eMails and some others:
In the past, you easily could purchase from Amazon US via gift cards and then upload to your Kindle via USB.
With the introduction of the international Kindle, that's not working anymore.
They cross-reference your actual location with the one in your account. My account is US, my location is Germany.
They give some options then: "Are you traveling?", "Did you move?".
I've sent them an email about me being on a business trip. Curiously waiting for their response.
But there's an easy workaround, just bought the newest "Dexter" by Jeff Lindsay.
I'm not using Whispernet. So they have to identify my location through the web. This of course easily can be circumvented. The last 30 minutes, I've spent virtually in the US. Now I'm in Amsterdam and then will be in Germany again.
Has been a bit of a hassle.
But one still has to admit: Brilliant move, Amazon! Kindle available in 100 locations/countries at once, and no one even has heard a rumor. Wow!

How do you it? can i have the details?
thanks

Scott Nielsen · 10-08-2009, 08:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

I think it's just a matter of not being able to broker a deal with a provider. If you look, you'll see a a few sparkly white spots on the map in Europe too.

Yeah, could well be. But Singapore is not a difficult country to do business in and is usually one of the first places in Asia (after the two usual suspects of Japan and Hong Kong) to get on board with new technology.

JeremyZ · 10-08-2009, 08:54 AM

I dont know about that. Amazon advertises over 350k books available. I haven't looked into self-published stuff, but I do know that when I look for something that is popular and has been around for a while, (Agatha Christie) there are at least 5 different versions of the same book. Not only this, but KINDLE EDITION versions of the same book. It seems like Amazon is using these tricks to boost their apparent selection.

If you register in Germany, maybe you will only have one Kindle Edition for each book, but the same selection?

It is worth considering.

Ea · 10-08-2009, 09:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JeremyZ

...
If you register in Germany, maybe you will only have one Kindle Edition for each book, but the same selection?

I highly doubt it. I have been searching for specific books - a variety of what I like to read - and in only a few cases were they available for my location (I was logged in with Danish address account) - and only one of those were (slightly) cheaper than WHSmith or Waterstones.

Sweetpea · 10-08-2009, 09:29 AM

I only want three books, and they are available, if I only had a Kindle... But buying a Kindle for those three books.... I mean, we're talking about the ugliest thing around!

GeoffC · 10-08-2009, 09:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

I only want three books, and they are available, if I only had a Kindle... But buying a Kindle for those three books.... I mean, we're talking about the ugliest thing around!

not quite

.... but I share your view .....

AnemicOak · 10-08-2009, 09:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by HarryT

Bear in mind, though, that this is just a "starting point" as far as the UK (and the rest of Europe) goes. They will undoubtedly get UK publishers "on board" as time goes on, and improve the selection.

Yep, it wasn't that long ago that the K1 launched with around 90,000 titles and folks were thrilled by the huge selection. Give it a little time to get a market presence.

kennyc · 10-08-2009, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sweetpea

I only want three books, and they are available, if I only had a Kindle... But buying a Kindle for those three books.... I mean, we're talking about the ugliest thing around!

.

amjbrown · 10-08-2009, 10:09 AM

I think MobileRead veterans outside the US are rather underwhelmed. Kindle fans have already worked out how to get one, others have learned to live with, and in many cases love the alternatives.

What I wonder is how the non eInk device owning public are going to react. I think the USD pricing will frighten some off, and the current lack of a nice (for example) UK page showing some of the books available won't help. You can't underestimatetge Amazon brand appeal though - that will be a draw for people looking for presents for those that "have everything"!

What do others think?

Amjb

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10-08-2009, 07:17 AM	#197
sony_fox Zealot Posts: 109 Karma: 84 Join Date: Jun 2009 Location: Manchester Device: Kobo Auroa H2O	Regarding the number of books availabe - 280k or so for the Kindle. Does anyone know what the comparable EPUB number is? higher lower or about the same?

10-08-2009, 07:19 AM	#198
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,557 Karma: 93980341 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	It's difficult to make a direct comparison, because an unknown amount of what's in the Kindle store is self-published content, rather than "real" books.

10-08-2009, 07:34 AM	#199
neilmarr neilmarr Posts: 7,215 Karma: 6000059 Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Monaco-Menton, France Device: sony	Right you are, Harry. Reduced-risk selection (recreational reading time is precious) is becoming more and more of a problem as the doors swing wider to allow in so many truly useless 'authors' -- especially in ebook and PoD forms. From the other side of the fence, though, there are self-published authors out there who produce gems but are swamped by nonsense and tarred with the same 'self-publish-slush' brush. And, of course, the professionally published and well evaluated Lost Symbol tops best-seller charts everywhere. Reading is a very hit-and-miss pursuit, eh? Cheers. Neil

10-08-2009, 07:49 AM	#201
inuyashaohki Junior Member Posts: 4 Karma: 10 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: none	my decision is clear: I will register mine in the US and use it in Germany... 790.000 Ebooks vs 290.000 (and to be honest the 290.000 looked like crap) If I need to download wireless from Germany than the 1.99 are clearly no roadblocker for me anymore.

10-08-2009, 08:54 AM	#204
JeremyZ Addict Posts: 303 Karma: 1000702 Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Chicago Device: Nook ST, Kindle 2, Samsung Galaxy Stellar phone	I dont know about that. Amazon advertises over 350k books available. I haven't looked into self-published stuff, but I do know that when I look for something that is popular and has been around for a while, (Agatha Christie) there are at least 5 different versions of the same book. Not only this, but KINDLE EDITION versions of the same book. It seems like Amazon is using these tricks to boost their apparent selection. If you register in Germany, maybe you will only have one Kindle Edition for each book, but the same selection? It is worth considering.

10-08-2009, 09:29 AM	#206
Sweetpea Grand Sorcerer Posts: 9,707 Karma: 32763414 Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Krewerd Device: Pocketbook Inkpad 4 Color; Samsung Galaxy Tab S6	I only want three books, and they are available, if I only had a Kindle... But buying a Kindle for those three books.... I mean, we're talking about the ugliest thing around!

10-08-2009, 10:09 AM	#210
amjbrown Addict Posts: 322 Karma: 1231044 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: London, UK Device: Kindle Oasis 3, Kindle app on the iPhone	I think MobileRead veterans outside the US are rather underwhelmed. Kindle fans have already worked out how to get one, others have learned to live with, and in many cases love the alternatives. What I wonder is how the non eInk device owning public are going to react. I think the USD pricing will frighten some off, and the current lack of a nice (for example) UK page showing some of the books available won't help. You can't underestimatetge Amazon brand appeal though - that will be a draw for people looking for presents for those that "have everything"! What do others think? Amjb

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