After two years of bromance, Target and Amazon bid farewell to seek other mates. Target, which began selling Amazon’s Kindle and Kindle Fire in stores in June 2010, announced last week that it’s halting shipments of Kindle products to its stores due to a competitive conflict. As Kindle products have grown from simple e-readers into full-blown tablets, with apps which link Amazon stores replete with competitive products, Amazon has become a threat. Likewise, Target is favoring Apple more and more these days, giving the Cupertino-based company a stronger focus in stores and promoting sales for iPads over Kindles.
As one of the biggest retailers of Kindles, discontinuing the product is a bold move from Target. One of the Nook’s biggest advantages was that it was physically sold in stores rather than only online, giving customers a chance to play with products in-person, thus making them more likely to complete the sale. So when Target first agreed to promote Kindles, it allowed Amazon to expand sales from the web to brick and mortar, allowing Amazon to strike down competing underdogs once again by providing the same convenience.
In another twist of events, earlier last week Microsoft flooded headlines when it invested $300 million in Barnes and Noble’s e-reader, Nook. While Microsoft had never created physical e-readers (at least as we know them), the company does have a long, sordid history of successes and failures in the market. Some examples include Reader software, which was eventually implemented in almost all Windows operating systems and the Pocket PC platform (a pre-smartphone e-reader app), and the Windows Tablet Edition Platform.
Though Microsoft has caught flack from some tech bloggers for the investment, it will be one of the smartest moves yet. The company has the resources to create a great product--Barnes and Noble simply provides Microsoft with the key succeed: an extensive user base. By accessing Barnes and Noble’s online customer accounts, as well as reaching out to all those who already favor Nooks, Microsoft can finally wage a war.
For true book lovers out there, the kind who read multiple books at a time --a few chapters of Game of Thrones during their morning commute, Steve Jobs’ biography during their lunch break, and a low-key novel at night--e-readers are essential. These little devices change the way we read now, just like iPods and other mp3 players altered the way we listened to music back in 2001; instead of lugging around several heavy books or CDs, users carry one lightweight device and within seconds have access to an enormous database--in this case one that rivals the Library of Alexandria.
In other words, e-readers are shaping the future of print. Yes, tablets can serve the same function plus so much more, but most users find e-readers to be a far more pleasant experience. The lower price, easy-to-read screen, longer battery life, and its portability make the e-reader a worthy buy. For those who want a simple reading device, e-readers will always prevail over tablets. So don’t underestimate: e-reader wars are just as important as tablet wars. Whoever maintains the best product as well as a high user base (which almost equalizes Microsoft with Amazon here), acquires top dog status.
Though Barnes and Noble still has a long ways to go, Microsoft’s investment and Target’s slap on the wrist may finally give Nook sales a chance to match Kindle’s.
