Report: E-reader sales will surge at the $150 price point
The e-reader market is set to surge---once the devices hit an optimal price of about $150, according to research from the Yankee Group.
In a report, Yankee Group forecast that e-readers will generate $1.3 billion in revenue in 2010 and hit $2.5 billion by 2013.
The number of companies pitching e-readers has swelled. At CES 2010, there were a bevy of models introduced---all taking aim at Amazon's Kindle. Yankee Group estimates that 6 million e-readers will be sold in 2010. By 2013, 19.2 million e-reader units will be sold a year.
Yankee Group defined the e-book reader as devices with the following characteristics:
- Processor speeds limited to 700 Mhz or less;
- ePaper displays;
- Storage capped at 4 GB.
Yankee Group's forecast is based on the Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Sony Reader, Interead’s COOL-ER, Plastic Logic’s Que, enTourage’s eDGe, Hearst’s Skiff and Foxit’s eSlick.
Also see: CES 2010: Top 10 new e-book readers· 
By 2013, the installed e-reader base will be more than 36 million.
Yankee Group reckons that e-reader adoption will be limited to heavy readers until prices hit a sweet spot of $150 or so. The research firm sees e-reader prices falling 15 percent a year over the next five years. That price drop will significantly boost adoption.
Related:
Can the Kindle work as an app platform?
Amazon gives publishers a bigger royalty cut for Kindle; Apple Tablet defense?