Can Amazon Maintain Its 60% Ebook Reader Market Share In 2010?

Some say that, when the original Amazon Kindle was released in November 2007, there was no real competition for it. Certainly there were fewer readers around at that time, but such a statement may be just a little harsh on Sony's PRS reader. In fact, the Kindle's success was primarily due to the fact that it offered users significantly enhanced benefits which had not been available prior to its launch. Wireless connectivity, without any monthly fee, was a major selling point - as was the huge choice of Kindle ebooks on offer at the Amazon Kindle store.

Amazon released the upgraded Kindle 2 in February of 2009, which featured quicker page turns, increased storage capacity, extended battery life and was slimmer, lighter and better looking than the original Kindle. In June 2009, they followed up with the Kindle DX, which was basically a large display version of the Kindle 2 - which incorporated native pdf file handling capabilities and had an accelerometer to auto rotate the display when the reader was laid on its side.

In the short interval following the launch of the two latest Kindles, there seems to have been an exponential increase in the level of competition in the ebook reader market. Sony has now released an entire new range of readers and Barnes and Noble have also thrown their hat into the ring with their Nook reader. Other manufacturers, such as Asus, Microsoft, Plastic Logic and even Apple, have readers of their own in development, most of them scheduled for release in the near future. Many of these readers have features which exceed those of the Kindle family. If lack of competition was ever truly a factor in the Kindle's success, then the situation now seems to have reversed.

There's no doubt that Amazon has responded to the increased competition. For example, the price of the Kindle 2 has been slashed from the original $ 359 launch price to $ 259 today. Firmware updates, including extended duration before entering screensaver mode, prolonged battery life and pdf capability for the Kindle 2 have been added. Audio menus to help blind users are being brought in and Amazon has released Kindle "Apps" for the PC and Apple iPhone. Amazon have also launched the Kindle 2 worldwide, and no doubt hope to secure a market share similar to the 60% level which they currently lay claim to in the USA.

Somewhat uncharacteristically for Amazon however, many of these changes seem to be as a response to the competition. It'seems improbable that Amazon have run out of new ideas for its best selling product - so when might we expect to see new and innovative changes and what might these be?

One of the most probable new developments on the cards must surely be the introduction of some level of touch screen control. Many of the new readers incorporate this and it does seem to be a feature that users value. Another feature that would almost certainly appeal to many users would be a color display. However, given the current state of the technology, it seems unlikely that this will be made available in the next iteration of the Kindle. If it were, then it would certainly be a major coup for Amazon.

Other changes may be less hardware focused. For example, many of Amazon's competitors seem to be lining up behind the ePub format for ebooks. Amazon currently use a proprietary which means that Kindle books can only be used on the Kindle reader. The ability to transfer books from one reader to another, possibly of a different make, and even to lend them to family and friends will certainly become a selling point in the future. Further changes and enhancements are guaranteed. Amazon will certainly not allow the Kindle to go the way of Sony's Betamax video tape or Toshiba's HD DVD system.

As to the timescale for the release of the Kindle 4, it seems probable that Amazon will want to have a launch sometime in 2010. The market is growing and developing so fast that Amazon simply cannot allow too long a span between upgrades. The Kindle developed into Amazon's best selling item with astonishing speed. Amazon will simply not allow their competitors to get ahead of them in the ebook reader market.