Has iriver jumped the gun on Sony’s ereader plans?
There hasn’t been a flashpoint for ereaders yet. Ignore the iPad – you could read a book on it, but it’s not an ereader. This is about E Ink – for reading novels, biographies, that sort of thing. It’s a simple solution to a simple problem. In theory.
As expected, iriver is on the cusp of selling its Story ereader. But this isn’t about the launch of another monochrome screen that does more or less the same thing as all the others. With apologies for the unavoidable pun, the real story here is that the reader will give access to WHSmith’s online bookstore.
Gadgets cannot live on spec alone these days. They need to continue to add value through updates and – for want of a less managementy word – content. Content can be apps or music or TV shows or films. Or, indeed, books.
The most likely reason Sony is still holding back on its 3G Daily Edition Reader this side of the pond is that there are deals to make with publishers and distributors. Amazon was able to take a short cut, while Apple had a proven sales environment (iTunes). And, now, iriver has WHSmith, one of the biggest brands in bookselling.
Does that leave Sony out in the cold? Or will we see a deal announced to put it back in the ereader game? Either way, this is one part of the future library that isn’t getting any quieter.
We'll be getting hold of iriver's Story soon. More thoughts then.
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