Word: amazon
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...Some analysts speculate Amazon will ultimately have to purchase a major player in the digital universe, like Netflix, to prevent falling behind in the movie and book digital transformation as it did when Apple snatched control of the digital-music industry...
...Ostrofsky believes Amazon will have to revamp and upgrade the Kindle to stay competitive. "My guess is that Jeff [Bezos] is going to have to come out with a color version darn fast - probably faster than he wanted to - because the iPad is going to take market share away," he says. On Feb. 4 the New York Times reported that Amazon had purchased Touchco, a start-up company specializing in touchscreen technology...
Adding to the iPad threat is a dispute over e-book pricing. Apple signed deals that allow publishers to set the prices in Apple's iBooks store, and new e-book best sellers are expected to be priced at $12.99 to $14.99 - which is considerably higher than Amazon's $9.99 price. Publisher Macmillan is already pressuring Amazon to offer similar pricing. It demanded the right to set prices on Amazon, causing an angry Amazon to pull all of Macmillan's books from its site. However, two days later, amid a firestorm of debate, Amazon indicated that it would agree...
...Analysts worry that higher e-book pricing could eat into demand for Amazon's Kindle. "They're trying to build the iTunes for books with their Kindle, so they're particularly sensitive about market share for books," says Sebastian. (See the 25 best back-to-school gadgets...
...That said, the higher e-book price could actually benefit Amazon's bottom line. "At $9.99, Amazon wasn't making any money," says Hamed Khorsand, an analyst at BWS Financial. "So for Amazon to be forced to sell a product at $12.99, they're basically being allowed to make a profit." If prices continue to escalate higher though, it could be a problem, analysts...