The organisers of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) being held in Las Vegas have, for the first time ever, designated a specific area for e-book readers. This makes perfect sense, there are a minimum of two dozen different manufacturers displaying their readers at this year’s show.
The increased level of awareness, both on the part of electronics manufacturers and the public, is quite understandable. 2009 was a great year for e-book readers and all the signs seem to point to 2010 being even more successful.
A great deal of the credit for this must be given to Amazon’s Kindle reader. The Kindle 2.0 launch in February, followed by the launch of the larger DX in June, created a tidal wave of publicity for e-book readers as a whole and, of course, for the Kindle reader in particular.
The Kindle quickly went on to become Amazon’s number one selling product and, during the festive season of 2009, the Kindle became Amazon’s most gifted product ever. Sales of Kindle books made up 35% of all book sales (where a Kindle edition existed). On Christmas day 2009, for the first time ever, Amazon sold more Kindle books than traditional books.
At the close of 2009. the market for e-book readers had been clearly established. Currently, Amazon enjoys a 60% market share with Sony trailing in second place with 35%. Of course, there are many electronics manufacturers casting an envious eye over the success of both Amazon and Sony and who now want their slice of the pie. They could face a difficult challenge, considering Amazon’s dominance. However, the market is still in a very early stage of development and massive growth seems likely, even in the short term. The right product could rewrite the rules overnight.
Manufacturers of consumer electronics hardware are far from the only companies who have a vested interest in the continued expansion of the market for e-book readers. Independent manufacturers of various different accessories – screen protectors, covers, clip on reading lights (e-book reader displays are not back-lit), chargers, etc. – will also benefit from this brand new market which only recently came into being. Most accessories are targeted at the Kindle at the moment, but as new readers emerge and start to make sales then accessories for these will also be supplied.
2010 will be a big year for both e-book readers and e-books. The 2011 Consumer Electronics shows will also have a separate e-book reader section – but it may be somewhat increased in size compared with this year.
Check out the Amazon Kindle reader – and don’t forget you can save a lot of money by getting free Kindle books – straight from the Amazon website.
