Will you buy the new Kindle with Special Offers?
Amazon has just introduced a new version of the Kindle with on-screen ads, and this brings the price down to $114.00, or $25.00 less than the previous “cheapest” version of the Kindle.
Where will the ads display? At the present time, the ads are to display instead of the screensavers that normally display when your Kindle is “sleeping.” This means that instead of a picture of a classic author, you’ll see an ad for a new product, a visa card, etc. The ads will also display at the bottom of the device’s home page. As a Kindle owner, I do have to agree that these particular choices will be non-intrusive, and will not take anything away from the superior reading experience that Kindle offers.
Some of the discounts Amazon plans to offer in the initial weeks include a $20 Amazon gift card for $10 (a deal that was a monster hit when Amazon offered it earlier this year through LivingSocial), plus discounts on Amazon MP3 albums, Audible books and Kindle bestsellers. As a regular Amazon shopper, I have to admit these are tempting offers!
However, this is also another case of interest based advertising…meaning, just as Google displays advertising based on your internet usage, your Kindle will also display ads based on your Amazon usage. (And frankly, I’m already tired of my computer, my phone, and now my Kindle knowing ME better than my closest friends….)
I suppose it was inevitable that someone would introduce an eReader with advertising…and since Amazon has been the forerunner in eReader development for years, it’s only fitting that Amazon introduces this new idea. I cannot help wondering, however, how much of this is actually just a new, previously untouched marketing venue? And how much of this is designed to lower the cost of the Kindle versus how much is this designed to generate more overall revenue for Amazon?
Don’t think the advertising would bother you? Want to order the Kindle, and save the $25 off the regular price?
