How About an E-Reader with Your Morning Cup o’ Joe?
There has been some buzz lately about the introduction of e-readers that offer a better way for consumers to read their morning papers. While iRex Technologies’ Iliad E-Reader is being tested by a Belgian financial newspaper De Tijd, Sony is slated to release its own version of the e-reader later this year. With circulation down for most newspapers around the world, it’s no wonder that Sony and iRex are taking a stab at pulling the current hard-copy readers online as well as attracting the new generation of consumers who solely rely on the Internet and electronic devices for their news. But in order for these devices to really take off, advertisers must follow as well, which is questionable.
With the devices reported to go for about $400, my question is, how are these e-readers different from other PDA’s that allow consumers to retrieve their news online? Furthermore, why is there a need for a device that is tailored towards viewing electronic newspapers when consumers can just go to a newspaper’s website for information from their PDA? According to a recent New York Times article, the key to these new e-readers is that the screens reflect light instead of transmitting it, therefore making the viewing experience similar to reading the paper in print. The devices can be updated through the Internet or via Wi-Fi hot spots but cannot surf the Web.
The iRex Technologies website also explains that users can also use the device to “write comments, mark or underline sections, for a true two-way paper experience.” Still, I don’t think users will be jumping up and down to electronically highlight their newspapers unless they are working on research papers for school… so what is the point? And what would be the point for advertisers? Would users download ads embedded in the electronic newspapers? Obviously, this technology has yet to be addressed.
In this fast-paced age of digital news, I am not a fan of devices that don’t seem to multitask and these e-readers appear to fall into that category. But, if readers happen to embrace drinking their morning cup of coffee with their e-reader, advertisers will have to also adopt the devices as yet another avenue into the online advertising world
Reader Comments.
I have no intention of using an e-ink e-book for the news.
But I will happily use one to store and read the many hundreds of books that I have in my e-book collection.
Why not use a PDA? Because the screens are far too small and the battery life is far too limited. And it is loaded with functions that I have no use for.
I’m hoping for an inexpensive, single-function product. I need nothing more than a large e-ink screen, buttons to turn the pages, and the memory to store a few months worth of reading magerial.
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