The Sony Reader, going international. The electronic book reader, which is only available here and there, will spread to Japan, China, Australia, Italy, and Spain before the end of the year. Shocked.
Sony will work with local bookstores and whatnot to generate heat for the device. I imagine that means you’ll be able to walk into the equivalent of a Best Buy or whatever and walk out with a reader.
As you know, the Sony Reader works with Sony’s Reader Store, as well as with all the standard formats (PDF, ePub, etc.). Will the Reader store also launch internationally? One would assume so. How else would you sell books translated into the local language?
And wouldn’t you know it, but China is pegged to be the largest e-book market on the planet in a few years’ time. So says DisplaySearch, a researching outfit that knows a thing or two about e-books.
The real winner here? E-Ink, Inc. Their technology is in so many of these e-readers that they must be swimming in royalties and licensing fees right about now.