Amazon's first million tablets … or e-readers?
Amazon has more than a million tablets on order, according to Taiwan's DigiTimes. If accurate, this would make the online bookstore a significant force in the media tablet business, second only to Apple. It's an increasingly crowded market, with companies such as Acer, Archos, Asus, Dell, HP, HTC, Lenovo, Motorola, RIM and Samsung all shipping tablets, along with numerous second tier and "white box" suppliers. However, Amazon has its own marketing channel, content, apps, and a proven track record with its Kindle ebook reader. Unlike most suppliers, Amazon can provide customised access to its own Instant Video Store, MP3 Music Store, App Store for Android, and Cloud Player for Android, as well as a Kindle-compatible ebook reader.
DigiTimes' numbers (below) are based on information from "upstream component suppliers" of, for example, LCD screens. The paper says: "Among orders from non-iPad vendors, those from Amazon are said to be the most positive, with demand for touch panels likely to reach two million units for the August-September period, the sources indicated, noting that shipments of tablet PCs to Amazon are expected to reach 1-1.2 million units by a conservative estimate in the third quarter."
Rumours of Amazon tablets code-named Coyote and Hollywood have been circulating for a while, and were covered here last month in Amazon tablet could add to market explosion. However, IceWarp has recently fanned speculation by issuing a press release with the headline: IceWarp is Compatible with the Upcoming Amazon Tablet.
Amazon does have a strong incentive to launch a tablet in a hurry, and this has nothing to do with Apple. In a research note published on July 8, market tracker IDC noted that: "eReaders enjoyed 105% year-over-year growth as the devices continue to grow in overall popularity, particularly with the introduction of color devices, such as Barnes & Noble's Color Nook". The release adds:
"For eBooks, Barnes & Noble's Color Nook helped the company to take the lead in the eReader market for the first time. Amazon's Kindle was second, but the lack of a color offering has clearly impacted the company's previous dominance in the eReader market. IDC forecasts the worldwide eReader market to ship 16.2 million units in 2011, a 24% increase over 2010."
It's a safe bet that Amazon boss Jeff Bezos is not happy about the Kindle taking second place in the growing e-reader market behind a rival bookseller's product. This must make a colour version of the Kindle a high priority.
Barnes & Noble's Color Nook runs Google Android, but it is an e-reader rather than a general-purpose tablet, and researchers such as IDC count these categories separately. What we don't know is whether Amazon's Android-based tablet will be an e-reader or a tablet, though it seems likely it will be positioned as both.
