Electronic book readers have been available for quite some time now. The Franklin eBookman is generally considered to have been the first and launched in 1999, over a decade ago. Other readers slowly appeared – the Sony PRS launched in 2006 and the first Amazon Kindle hit the streets in November of 2007.

However, it wasn’t until 2009 that the popularity of e-book readers really rocketed. Amazon were very instrumental in this – the February launch of the Kindle 2.0, followed shortly after by the launch of the larger DX version in June produced a storm of publicity around e-book readers in general and the Kindle in particular. E-book readers were in the news, they were the hot, “must have” gadget of 2009. The Kindle reader quickly became the top selling product on Amazon and, during the 2009 festive gift giving bonanza, became Amazon’s “most gifted” product ever. Both Sony and Barnes and Noble had a good tilt at the Xmas sales by releasing their own new readers – but an inability to guarantee delivery in time for the big day coupled with the Kindle’s well established brand presence, meant that Amazon cleaned up at Christmas.

There is no shortage of e-book readers to choose from right now. There is a long, and impressive list, of manufacturers who now have their readers on the market, or who are developing them for release in the very near future. Industry analysts are anticipating that 2010 will be a big year for e-book readers and the level of sales is expected to increase.

It is, to all intents and purposes, an entirely new market segment which, until very recently, simply didn’t exist. Aside from manufacturers of the e-book reader devices themselves, there are implications for book publishers, academic establishments, educational authorities, third party suppliers and, of course, the book reading public.

The sudden emergence of this market segment has been good news for companies such as M-Edge who manufacture a wide range of Kindle accessories including covers, reading lights, chargers and so on. There are plenty of other accessory suppliers who are also benefiting. At the moment, there is a strong focus on accessories for the Kindle, but as the market expands and other readers gain in popularity these will also offer good opportunities to the independents.

The e-book reader market is, even now, still in its infancy. It is developing and expanding at an astonishing rate. Up to now, Amazon has been a strong influence in the development of the market and currently claims a 60% slice of the e-book reader market in the U.S. In 2010, their dominance will be challenged – as will the second position currently held by Sony with a smaller, but nonetheless very respectable, 35% market share. This e-book reader gold rush still affords plenty of opportunities for companies with the innovative skills and vision to take advantage and establish themselves now whilst the market is in a period of rapid growth.

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The e-book reader market is still relatively new, but has tremendous potential for growth in the very near future. Up until now, the Amazon Kindle reader family has been the undisputed market leader. Amazon’s Kindle 2, released in February of 2009 – and the large format Kindle DX, released in June of 2009, have dominated the market and have had very little real competition. The importance of the market, and its potential, can be measured by the fact that the Kindle is now Amazon’s number one selling product.

That could all be about to change in the very near future however – there is a long list of manufacturers who are planning to launch competing e-book readers. Some of these launches are planned before the year end, with others to follow in the early part of 2010. Two of the most serious contenders for Amazon’s crown are Sony – with their Daily Edition reader, and Barnes and Noble – with their Nook reader. Both readers were scheduled for a mid-December launch in time to cash in on the Christmas gift sales market.

Priced at $399, the Sony Daily Edition is available for pre-order. However, Sony are not guaranteeing that it will be delivered in time for Xmas. According to Sony’s website, the reader will commence shipping on December’ and they will be despatched on a first come first served basis. Sony have been surprised by the level of interest and, whilst they will make every effort to get the new readers shipped in time for the big day, there are no guarantees that they will arrive in time.

Meanwhile, the Barnes and Noble Nook, which was also scheduled for a mid-December roll-out, has had its launch date delayed until January 2010 for any orders received after November 20. High demand is again cited as the reason for the delay.

In an attempt to make at least some holiday sales, Barnes and Noble is offering a “holiday certificate” for the Nook which advises the lucky gift recipient that they should receive their device early in 2010. Not quite the same thing on Christmas morning – is it?

So, whilst all the signs are there that the e-book market is going to grow very big, very fast during the course of next year, for the moment at least, Amazon is still number one and is likely to clean up in the holiday gift stakes. Competition will certainly increase dramatically next year, but Amazon has a pretty clear run at sales this Christmas at least. Next year, it will be surprising if Amazon doesn’t aggressively defend its number one slot – they currently supply 60% of the U.S. e-book reader market) and it should be interesting to see what develops. The main beneficiaries of all this heightened competition will be consumers as there will be a downward pressure on price levels.

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