Kindle Review – Kindle 3 Review, iPad Review

The BookSeller surveyed 1,000+ book trade Professionals (in London) and found some rather interesting results -

The results showed that though 44% of respondents had read a book digitally, only 19% had bought one.

The majority of respondents said that e-books should be priced at the same cost as a paperback book (30.1%), or cheaper (53.6%).

It’s interesting that even Book Trade Professionals (50%+ publishers, plus booksellers, librarians, agents and authors) think Publishers are getting ebook pricing wrong.

1. There’s a strong belief that high price of ebooks is a hindrance to the growth of digital book sales.
2. At the same time there’s concern that low-priced ebooks will devalue ‘the book’ as a product.

Also interesting – 88% of respondents think brick and mortar bookstores will be hit the most.  

How prevalent is the demand for low prices? Even Vook are bending to it.

Vook seem to have given up on the $10 price point

It had seemed that Vooks might be a way to get people to pay more – To position the video and text experience as higher end and perhaps convince people it’s worth paying $10 for.

However, the recent moves by Vook indicate that they are finding more success with lower prices -

1. Prices of Vooks have all been cut to $6.99 or lower.
2. Prices of the Vook Apps in the App Store have been reduced too. 
3. Their new Sherlock Holmes Vook is just $2.99. There is also free access to their Sherlock Holmes Vook for every educator and a free copy for every library in the US and UK.

If even video books can’t charge high amounts where does that leave ebooks?

Vook on Nook?

Speaking of Vooks, it would seem that Vook on Nook would be a hit.

1. You have the text on the eInk screen and the video on the LCD.
2. You can use the LCD to provide an actual advantage, and not just browsing color covers.

It would benefit both Vook and B&N to promote Vook on Nook (although the English Language might never recover).

ePub suddenly becomes HUGE

PC World has HUGE news i.e. China and Taiwan agreed in principle to push ePub for the Chinese-language market.

The push to promote a standard e-book format could have far-reaching implications …

… publishers will have to use the EPUB (.epub) format for materials they hope to sell in the market of 1.3 billion people.

China and Taiwan are meeting again next year to cement plans and move ahead.

At that point Amazon might not be left with a choice – look for Kindle ePub support by the time China and Taiwan meet next year.

Taiwan a force in eReaders and improving

Tomorrow Taiwan will announce a $66 million plan to promote electronic publishing in Taiwan.

Here’s a short list of Taiwanese companies neck-deep in eReaders -

1. Prime View International which makes eInk screens – they bought US-based eInk earlier this year. 
2. Foxconn which makes the Kindle (and Sony Reader and PS3 and Xbox).
3. Asustek which are promising two dual screen netbooks/ereaders in March 2010.
4. AU Optronics which also makes eInk screens.

It’s interesting to think that after Amazon and Barnes and Noble the biggest beneficiaries of eReaders might be Taiwanese companies.