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Kindle for the iPad

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sweet. sure hope apple doesn't omit kindle from the iPad app store. I have many kindle books i read using the iPhone app, sure would like to read them on the iPad
 
I am glad to hear this. I have a kindle 2, which I really enjoy for reading novels, but I think that the ipad may actually be better for cookbooks and certain kinds of materials (where you need to skip around a bunch).
 
It may be official for Amazon, but does that story talk about Apple telling amazon it is a go?

I am all for it, but I have always had a sneaking suspicion that Apple would have a legitimate reason not to allow the Amazon and B&N apps.

As a Kindle owner with purchased books, I am thrilled if they do, but I wouldn't be surprised or upset if Apple tried to protect building their own store.

I guess the question would be conversely will the Kindle allow Apple to sell/read its books on it.
 
marksman said:
I guess the question would be conversely will the Kindle allow Apple to sell/read its books on it.
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Why not? We can buy mp3s from iTunes and play it on the Kindle, can we not?

The real question isn't whether or not Apple would allow Amazon and B&N's ereader apps on the iPad. (Although I certainly hope they do.) The real issue is that the publishing and ereader industries need to get their act together and settle on a standarized format for ebooks so we consumers don't lose all our ebooks when we move to a different device/platform.
 
I hope apple approves the kindle app for the Ipad since I really like using it on my Ipod Touch.
 
I don't foresee there being an issue with this app getting pass Apple. If anything, it would be in Apple's interest to approve this app. They already recognize that Amazon was the first real big player in the e-book market and that some readers have already built up a library with Amazon. If this app didn't exist it would be harder for some readers to jump to the iPad knowing their current collection would be unusable. This app could eliminate at least one concern for some users thinking of getting the iPad.

Personally, this is good news to me. I'm about done with my current book and was trying to decide how to handle my next book. I didn't really want to wait two weeks and hope that the iBookstore has it available. Now, I can go ahead and get it on my Kindle knowing that I will be able to carry it over to the iPad.
 
Sets up a real good question... does apple allow it?

I think amazon/bn are smart enough here to realize that either way they win. If they don't allow it they sue apple for anti competitive behavior claiming they are trying to force people out of the business which may stand up better in the EU then the USA.

If they DO allow it then the apple "bookstore" is a non-starter imho and I'll most likely buy most of my books from BN/Amazon since they are likely to offer better down the road compatibility with other readers.

Tim
 
Night Spring said:
Why not? We can buy mp3s from iTunes and play it on the Kindle, can we not?

The real question isn't whether or not Apple would allow Amazon and B&N's ereader apps on the iPad. (Although I certainly hope they do.) The real issue is that the publishing and ereader industries need to get their act together and settle on a standarized format for ebooks so we consumers don't lose all our ebooks when we move to a different device/platform.
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Why not? Because Apple has proven itself to deny apps for lesser reasons. You know, like not allowing Google Voice because it "duplicates" functionality. I don't think Apple will try and deny the Kindle App but Apple is unpredictable. Apple might say the Kindle App duplicates functionality with it's own iBook store. Allowing another book store is a bit of a precedent for allowing something like another music store or video store. I would be absolutely thrilled if that were the case.

We shall see what happens but I think Amazons store can become a huge problem for Apple because it's a direct competitor and you have the option of reading those same books on multiple devices while Apples store is only available on a single device. Whatever the case it'll be interesting to see how things play out.
 
There are already thousands of books available as apps in the app store, that will work as is on the iPad.

Furthermore the iBooks store is not built-in. Apple rejected apps because they duplicated built-in "core functionality".

I think that the iBooks store was created because Apple didn't want to be 100% reliant on Amazon for eBooks as they could not be sure that Amazon would support and embrace the iPad.
 
Casiotone said:
There are already thousands of books available as apps in the app store, that will work as is on the iPad.

Furthermore the iBooks store is not built-in. Apple rejected apps because they duplicated built-in "core functionality".

I think that the iBooks store was created because Apple didn't want to be 100% reliant on Amazon for eBooks as they could not be sure that Amazon would support and embrace the iPad.
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You make some good points, but at the same time I feel as if Apple has been unpredictable, denying apps for being "too political" and then hammering down "sexual" apps while allowing others like playboy to exist.

Amazon already has five platforms it exists on in the meantime. The PC, MAC, Blackberry, iPhone, and its own reading device. It also has almost half a million books already available with many customers already having a sizable library with them. It seems like a big threat to iBooks taking off IMO and there's no way Apple is overlooking that.
 
What makes no sense is why Amazon didn't get in on this all earlier.

Should have done anything they needed to in order to get the "official" book provider for the iPad. That would be their mobile device, and they could get out of the hardware industry.
 
after thinking about it, the fact that iBooks is an app you have to download. meaning the device is NOT shipped with it installed. I see no reason why Apple could logically not allow these other ebook apps into the iPad store.
 
To me it doesn't make sense for Amazon to advertise that for the iPad unless they got the go ahead from Apple. Large companies typically don't post specific information like that unless its written in stone.
I read an article that said they had 14 developers working on the ipad App, so why invest so much manpower on something that would get denied by Apple.
 
racer1441 said:
What makes no sense is why Amazon didn't get in on this all earlier.

Should have done anything they needed to in order to get the "official" book provider for the iPad. That would be their mobile device, and they could get out of the hardware industry.
Click to expand...

I don't think Amazon had a chance. I think Apple (Jobs) wanted another revenue stream and to provide all streams of media (video, audio AND books). I don't think they had or would have even entertain the idea of relying on Amazon or any other 3rd party vendor. They would lose control and not maximize profits. The iPad is a content delivery system. And the content is quite clearly coming from iTunes. The way Apple wants it.
 
jsbaugh said:
To me it doesn't make sense for Amazon to advertise that for the iPad unless they got the go ahead from Apple. Large companies typically don't post specific information like that unless its written in stone.
I read an article that said they had 14 developers working on the ipad App, so why invest so much manpower on something that would get denied by Apple.
Click to expand...


it is precisely because Bezos knows the app may get denied that he is publicizing it in this way, ahead of time. The more attention this issue draws, the more likely Apple's approval process may get scrutinized from a regulatory standpoint if the app gets rejected.

This is already happening with Google Voice which is obviously still unresolved. But most of the handwringing about GV came out after the fact. I think the bigger fish have learned that they need to call attention to this issue as early as possible.

As to the cost, a couple roomfulls of devs is a drop in the bucket for Amazon. The opportunity is too large to pass up or be too late on, and the risk of passing entirely is also too large.

I'm not remotely surprised about any aspect of this news.
 
It's pretty much unfeasible for Apple to block the iPad version because to do so they would have to block the iPhone app as well. It is built in to the SDK for developers to be able to write universal apps that contain code for both iPhone and ipad in one single binary. So all Amazon would have to do is issue an update to their exisiting approved app. Now, in theory, they could reject the update I suppose, but they would have a hard time doing so as long as Amazon followed the SDK rules.
 
Apple will not block this. Too much blowback.

I've seen some more shots of this and i'm a little excited.

I'll be able to switch back and forth from my Kindle DX and the iPad and postpone going blind for a while.
 
Kindle is the "killer app" that got me to buy an iPod Touch. Now that I know it is coming for iPad (even if there is some "app store approval" related delay) it helps convince me to pick up an iPad. I already know I can run the iPod/iPhone version of the Kindle app, why in the heck would Apple block Amazon from updating an already approved app so it can run on iPad? That would be pretty pathetic.

Heck, I wouldn't even be surprised if Amazon was one of the early recipients of an iPad to iron out the kinks in their Kindle app, though I must admit the priority probably went to developers whose apps generate a lot of revenue for Apple.

One of the things I don't like about the Kindle app is it sends you to Safari to buy books. I'd much rather make "in app" purchases even if there was a slight difference in price for convenience. I wonder if Bezos would be willing to let Apple take a bite out of "in app purchased" Kindle books? I bet he wouldn't mind one bit if it led to more sales. It's all about book sales. Apple is excited about yet another money machine sitting in end users' hands through which they can directly order stuff from the app store. Why would Apple consider ruffling our feathers over an unproven app like ibooks?

BTW, the Kindle app really isn't all that nice as is. It only offers 3 color schemes and a half dozen font settings. Ereader offers a lot more but ereader books are often more expensive. Now that I've mastered getting free stuff from manybooks.net over to Kindle, I find I use ereader less and less even though I like it more than the Kindle software. In the end it's the price I have to pay for books that drives which device or software I use to read them. Apple has taught the world that it's a lot easier to sell 10 billion dollars worth of music 99 cents at a time than $15.99 at a time.

Even if the only reason you're buying an iPad is for Kindle, there is no app-store related reason I can think of not to buy iPad right away. In the end, both Apple and Amazon view the hardware as an opportunity to sell you content and they don't (yet) mind one bit if both of their app stores happen to be available to you on the same device as long as in the end it means more money in their pockets.

Now if statistics were to prove that the presence of Kindle is strangling iBook sales, things could change. But not now. There are no iBook sales to strangle yet. Another question in the back of my mind is will apple block specific titles. If The Shack is available as an iBook for $12.99 and on Kindle for $6, will Apple (or the publisher) try to insist it gets blocked? There is already some of this going on with periodicals. Many of them can only be read on Kindle hardware not on Mac, Windows or iPod/iPhone. This is the approach that will probably take shape in the future. Some titles you have "archived" on your Kindle account will be readable elsewhere but will not download to your iPad via whispersync.
 
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