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Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) has told investors that it may soon start offering textbooks on the Kindle, its $400 e-book reading device. Portfolio's Tech Observer is bullish on the idea:This may be the move that flings Kindle into the mainstream. If nearly all textbooks wind up on Kindle, then paying $400 for a Kindle would turn into almost a no-brainer decision for college students [...] A single textbook can cost $150 new -- and still maybe $100 or more used [...] If e-book versions cost even 25% less, that's a huge savings ...I'm less excited: given that most college students don't buy a lot of books for pleasure, this $400 device would be used almost exclusively for textbooks: so you'd have to save a lot of money to make up for that $400 expense. Then there's the fact that the Kindle might not be so convenient for classes that involve flipping back and forth between chapters, appendixes and glossaries.
But the real downfall of the Kindle for textbooks is the fact that a lot of college students sell their books back to the store at the end of the semester, recouping as much as 50% of the cost.
A foray into textbooks will not take Kindle to the next level. It probably won't require a significant enough investment by Amazon to hurt shareholder value but it's definitely not something to get excited about.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-25-2008 @ 5:09PM
IceBurgh said...
If I could go back in time I would gladly forgo getting ripped off by the bookstore on selling back my books to not have to lug around a 30lb backpack.
Plus this would pay for itself in a semester.
Seems like a win if the selection is there.
8-25-2008 @ 5:19PM
Marduk said...
Recouping as much as 50%? That's the dream, but rarely happens. You are more likely to find a new edition of the book has been released and you can't sell the book back then you are to find that they'll take it back for 50% of the price.
8-26-2008 @ 10:33AM
Claudette said...
An e-Reader can be just the thing for plain text, but the value and beauty of newspapers, magazines and textbooks includes pictures and color. If Kindle can produce those, then I agree that it is a formidable product for those products as well as for novels.
8-26-2008 @ 10:06PM
thecase said...
Using the Kindle would not change the price of textbooks much at all.
The printing cost of a $100 textbook is only about $7.00 or so (just a guess), the rest of it goes to the authors, distributors, school, etc. Textbooks are not overpriced because of the printing costs.
8-27-2008 @ 5:44PM
Tennessee Waltzer said...
"But the real downfall of the Kindle for textbooks is the fact that a lot of college students sell their books back to the store at the end of the semester, recouping as much as 50% of the cost."
How come you're automatically focusing on COLLEGE texts? AMZN is thinking mostly about basic primary and secondary texts. Think of the massive savings for public and private schools alike! No flies on Mr. Bezos....
9-01-2008 @ 9:16PM
JT said...
What I love about the Kindle is you can book mark pages and search for say a phrase in all of your downloaded books or even do a search on any subject or phrase while reading one of your books even going directly to a Wikipedia. Great Idea for students!