Comments for Would You Pay More Than $99 For an eReader?

Would You Pay More Than $99 For an eReader?

2009-09-03T16:35:23Z

EBooks and eReaders are a hot topic right now, especially with the new line-up of Kindle competitors scheduled to arrive before the holiday season. However, according to a new report by Forrester Research's Sarah Rotman Epps, most people aren't willing to pay a lot for these devices. Forrester asked consumers at what price they would consider an eReader expensive but still buy it. The answer was generally somewhere between $50 and $99.

]]> This holiday season, the cheapest eReader on the market will be the Sony Reader Pocket Edition, which sells for $199, though this is a no-frills product without a wireless connection and a relatively small screen. All the other eReaders will be substantially more expensive, with the cheapest Kindle clocking in at $299. The COOL-ER reader is also relatively affordable at $249. According to Rotman Epps, however, only about 14% of the 181 million US consumers who are online would be willing to buy an eReader at $199 or higher.

$99 Is the New $199

In an earlier report, Rotman Epps argued that breaking the $199-barrier would be a major breakthrough for the eReader market and would allow these devices to become mainstream. Now it looks like $99 might actually be the point where eReader would become an impulse buy for the majority of consumers.

The good news for eReader manufacturers, however, is that those who intend to buy an eReader within the next six months are willing to pay up to $159 and those who actually already own one are even willing to pay over $250. A bargain price for eReaders for both of these groups would around $100, though.

Price Inevitably Comes Down

When it comes to consumer electronics, prices always come down in the long run, and we will surely see a similar trend for eReaders. For now, manufacturing costs for eReaders are still relatively high, but publishers could subsidize eReaders through a subscription model, for example.

It is clear, though, as Rotman Epps points out, that most consumers don't put a lot of value on these devices yet and that prices will have to come down substantially. Even then, Rotman Epps argues, eReaders will never be as popular as MP3 players because the majority of consumers "don't care enough about reading or technology to invest in this type of single-purpose device at anything close to realistic prices."

Comment from Inversion table on 2010-12-03

2010-12-03T19:53:08Z

For this price tag I would not be interested. It is not a necessary tool for me and I would only be will to try it out for fun sake if the price was reduced.

Comment from seo on 2010-01-01

2010-01-01T12:55:19Z

I see this gadget very useless. it´s only a little more thin than a notebook and must more bigger than a phone both gadget will be more popular useful a make more things

Comment from Jerry on 2009-12-23

2009-12-23T19:27:45Z

Come join our e-book reader community !
http://www.ereaderuniverse.com

Comment from Moo Kahn on 2009-10-20

2009-10-20T20:17:18Z

#1 @Roman. Blah blah blah me me me I I I . Posting "I hate XYZ and would never XYZ" on a site that is primarily about XYZ adds nothing to the discussion and is a waste of everyone's time. Crawl back in your hole and read a paperback. Whatever. WE DO NOT CARE.

#6, There is no word "irregardless" It's "regardless"

#15 Amen.

Do you good people realize that on Amazon, 1/3 of books that are available in Kindle format are now in fact sold that way? That's huge. At the very least it's proof of concept. eBooks aren't going away.

I don't understand why BN, Amazon, and whoever else is selling eBooks don't give you the e-reader with a 2-yr contract... a hybrid of mobile phone providers, Rhapsody, and the record clubs before them. Read anything you want - one at a time - for $9.99/mo.

- Rental books can be viewed but not stored (or set some reasonable limit... store 2-3.

- Purchased eBooks: Credit 10% of each purchase against the monthly fee, so if you buy 3-4 eBooks membership is essentially free.

Everyone wins in this arrangement. Authors get a few pennies of the rental and their normal royalty on a purchase. Publishers get a piece of the "perfected" monthly as well (adjusted for purchases). The cost of a Kindle is probably half of the selling price, so if you make the subscription $9.99 you pay for the unit in a year. Make the contract 2 yrs and charge like the phone company if you want to get out early.

I'd do that in a second - but there's no way I want to spend even $99 on a dedicated device when I already carry three other things that will display an eBook "good enough".

Finally - Why amazon doesn't allow you to buy an eBook and read on your laptop (using their proprietary software reader) is beyond me. They'd sell a lot more books.

Comment from LibertyNews on 2009-09-29

2009-09-29T17:50:20Z

If they want people to start reading content on eReader devices, they need to start giving them away for free... with a service contract, much like the cellphone industry.
Most people already understand these types of contracts and will feel like they are embarking on a reading plan and not purchasing a device that will become obsolete in a couple of years. This way readers could bundle content and keep it simple. For example you could sign up for a 24 month plan where you pay $20 a month for the right to download one book a month and two magazines or one book and a subscription to a newspaper. This type of Sales model is proven to work well with cell phones I think it would work even better with eReaders.

Comment from Scott on 2009-09-13

2009-09-13T21:50:00Z

I have been reading ebooks since the Palm Pilot, I have had every ereader on the market, I find that Stanza for the Iphone or Itouch is the best, it can convert any type of PDF, DOC, Text, or HTML to a ebook. I think the people who say would never use one, more than likely wouldn't read a regular book, or they have never tried a Ereader. Those who say it is a fad just get in line with those who saw no use for PSPs, MP3 players or cell phones, it's the future. Ask a student carring 70 pounds of books around if they would like a ereader to carry them all. The new Sony reader is a touch screen and you can edit in the book and highlight passages for study. So when your phone can play movies, surf the web and take pictures, why would a book reader be so strange...... Oh and by the way I can go back and re-download the first book I bought on Ereader.com, 9 years ago. (Peanutpress then)

Comment from LEADSExplorer.com on 2009-09-04

2009-09-04T11:51:45Z

Ink-jet printers sell for less ($50) and make their revenue on the consumables.
eReaders should sell for even less ($25) and make their revenue on the consumable content.

Ink-jet printer have moving parts, need precise mechanics in order to print neatly, electronics, memory and come with a power converter.
eReaders have no moving parts, electronics, memory, a battery and come with a power converter. 8 Mb USB Flash memory sells at $10-$15 without recurring revenue opportunity.

The price is what the fool want to pay for it.

Comment from Randomly on 2009-09-04

2009-09-04T10:23:05Z

Given the popularity of "the book", there will be the broadest possible markets: from completely free, perhaps subsidized by the cost of a new book, to the equivalent of leather bound, gold embossed on the finest paper!

I'm currently trying to hold off buying an e-reader until full color, flexible, touch sensitive electronic paperis on the market, preferably over 200dpi and affordable.

Comment from VIDEOCONVERTERFORMAC on 2009-09-03

2009-09-04T03:41:45Z

I would not. It's really expensive for me.

Comment from http://openid.codoxide.com/sameera on 2009-09-03

2009-09-04T01:19:53Z

Hi RWW,
eBook readers are not available in my country, and frankly I don't really understand the purpose behind these products? What real value does a eBook reader offer (for $300!)? I have tons of PDF ebooks and a ebook reader doesn't even support PDF out of the box.
In a country such as US where you can get a pretty decent netbook for the same price, why would anyone spend money on such a specific device? I understand there might be slight advantage in form factor but really, how hard is it to hold a 9"-10" netbook when you want to do some reading lying down?
And you get a full color display.

Can you help me understand?
I understand the paper vs ebook argument, but what's the point of a specialized ebook reader?

Comment from Andy on 2009-09-03

2009-09-04T00:31:42Z

It seems most people posting here are ignorant about the technology behind paper. Old books become unreadable because of the ink or the paper itself.

What good are books if after some time you can't open them? A similar argument would be to say that film should have remained on reels. Really?

But the best thing of all, the most ironic thing of it all, is that you are all responding not on paper, but digitally, online. Wake up and notice your own stupidity.

Comment from Frederic Lardinois on 2009-09-03

2009-09-04T00:03:01Z

Rose - check out http://www.overdrive.com/ - good chance that your library is already lending out eBooks and now you can read them on Sony's eBook readers

Comment from Rose on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T22:03:59Z

I might spend $99 on an eReader but I don't see myself buying that many books. The library is free you know.

If I could use the device to read things from a public library -- SOLD!

Comment from Gene Becker on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T21:35:06Z

"According to Rotman Epps, however, only about 14% of the 181 million US consumers who are online would be willing to buy an eReader at $199 or higher."

Only 25 million customers and a >$5 billion high-end market segment? Yeah, who would ever want to be in such a crappy business?

So which parts of this study are we supposed to believe, exactly?

Comment from Michael Pastore on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T21:32:19Z

I might pay $ 99 for a device that reads ebooks. And another $ 99 for a device that only does email. And another $ 99 for a device that can do one thing: handle spreadsheets and accounting software. And another $ 99 for ...

On the other hand, let's see if Apple can bring us the portable do-everything machine, the iTablet, for under 600 bucks.

Michael Pastore, author
50 Benefits of Ebooks

Comment from Albin on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T21:07:50Z

Assuming I'm using the device to build a real library of books, I'm worried that the file format won't last. I have somewhat more confidence in Adobe PDF than I do in any of the hardware merchants over the next ten years. For the time being, I'll read the public domain e-books I do read on my netbook, but won't pay a nickel for a "book" that might not be readable on any hardware in a few years. Eventually, there will be a standard file format and I'll start buying copyrighted content.

Comment from Mike Cane on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T20:28:24Z

Even at $99, these would be just a passing fad. They're doomed already.

Why eInk, ePub, And eBooks Will Fail
http://ebooktest.blogspot.com/2009/08/why-eink-epub-and-ebooks-will-fail.html

Comment from Webomatica on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T20:17:22Z

This survey sounds accurate; I'd say $99 is right at the threshold of an "impulse buy" purchase. At that price I'm willing to give new technology a chance and if it doesn't work as well as advertised, you're not out that much.

A similar new product with the same price point is the Roku / Netflix Watch Instantly box which is $99 and one of the best tech purchases I made last year. And that low initial price is part of my satisfaction.

So yeah if an eBook were $99 I'd bite.

Comment from Ric on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T19:48:23Z

This carries more portent then just the digital divide for literature. It also highlights the the broken enthusiasm for innovation in this country. the first few comments spelled out CLEARLY why the whole platform is questionable and at best a step sideways in consumer appeal. When you still think you can dictate to your public instead of wooo them when it comes to your products, there is something fundamentally wrong! When you develop something worth looking at then and only then wake me from the boredom-outrage coma!

Comment from Ron on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T18:28:54Z

I wouldn't buy any of these till the kill switches and DRM schemes are removed, irregardless of the price. I don't want to be a victim of an event like this summers Amazon/Orwell fiasco. I just don't like a device where a company can delete or alter the content on a device I paid for without my permission.

I'll stick with good old fashioned paper books that can't be altered by anyone but myself. Keep your Kindle I don't need it.

Comment from priceless on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T17:49:55Z

I see this gadget very useless. it´s only a little more thin than a notebook and must more bigger than a phone (i.e. iphone) both gadget will be more popular useful a make more things

Comment from tom on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T17:38:40Z

devices must be multi-purpose and open-format...many different kinds of ebooks and document formats (e.g. pdf, doc, rtf, txt, epub), device has to do more than read ebooks, like browsing, email, phone, etc.

i myself don't care about music, but others do...device should do web, email somehow, other applications, etc.

ipod touch or apple tablet should do it for most people, depends on size/form factors, usability, etc.

oh -- did i mention?? lose the DRM, please.

Comment from Offbeatmammal on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T17:28:17Z

my biggest concern with paying a cent for an ereader is that it's sunk cost... and yet I still have to pay the same price for the ebook as a trade paperback, I have more limited choices, and I lose all the fair use rights I have with a dead tree book to lend it, give it away, on-sell it, trade it for credit etc.

I would love a device that lets me pack my entire library into a device the size of one of those books and take them everywhere with me. But I just don't have the trust or see the value yet

I've yet to see a reader that's enough to sway me from my earlier opinion on the subject - http://blog.offbeatmammal.com/post/2007/01/12/eBooks-why-I-still-dont-subscribe.aspx

Comment from Yuval on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T16:52:55Z

eReaders remind me of Sirius satellite radio. You need to pay an entry fee to be able to pay the vendor more for the content on the device. $99 is much more palatable than $199 as there is inherent unique value. I would go for that.

Comment from Roman on 2009-09-03

2009-09-03T16:49:26Z

I wouldn't pay a cent for an ebook reader. I belong to those who prefer dead trees when it comes to normal books (novels, etc) and pdf ebooks when I need some technical stuff. I wouldn't want one of them for free.