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A booming business was born when intrepid readers made the leap from traditional, and even computer screen, reading to e-reading devices, like the Kindle from Amazon.  Forrester Research predicts that in 2010, e-reader sales could hit about 10 million units – more than double that of 2009.  The units are cheaper, more brands are coming out with their own e-readers, including a “Kindle-killing” version from Barnes & Noble, more content is available, and people are hearing more and more about them.  While Amazon had arguably the biggest and most well-known e-reader, their supremacy could be ending at the hands of the new iPad.

Apple is waiting to take on Amazon; just a week after their iPad was introduced, Steve Jobs told the Wall Street Journal that publishers aren’t happy with Amazon – and of course, Apple is the place disheartened publishers, and readers, should turn for comfort and books.  Enderle Group analyst Rob Enderle says:

Steve Jobs is right.  The publishers aren’t happy with Amazon.  Amazon did give some concessions to publishers shortly before the iPad launched, but the Kindle has not been a publisher favorite.  Newspapers and magazines aren’t happy with the device, either, because it doesn’t offer the text in columns with embedded advertising.

Apple is ready to step in.  They’ve launched their iBooks app and the iBookstore to lure Kindle readers away from Amazon and to their iPad.  What would Amazon have to do to keep its lucrative Kindle business from leaving?  According to Enderle, the planned makeover for the Kindle will be a good move.  It is supposed to get a better display, which would take some of the wind out of Apple’s sails.  They can also work with publishers to make them happier, and thus, keep the readers happier.

Kindle readers tend to be very product-loyal, as are most Apple users, so it’ll be interesting to see who will come out on top of the e-reader battle.  Enderle adds:

Amazon has an advantage because they’ve been more closely coupled to this kind of media for much longer, and Apple has an advantage because they are an incredible marketing powerhouse and arguably stronger in that regard than Amazon is. “But both companies have done very well financially. Both companies are at the top of their game at the moment.

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Posted in: Amazon, Apple, e-reader, iPad, Kindle