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Amazon has announced that they will begin to support library lending sometime later this year. Some have speculated that this means they'll update the Kindle OS to support ePub. I think that's unlikely. I think it's more likely, because of some of the features (make and keep notes, etc.) they hope to offer, that there will be a conversion process that goes through Amazon's servers.
Kobo and Sony are a relatively small segment of the e-reader market. Nook is gaining. I don't think Amazon gains anything, particularly, by switching to or adding ePub support. All those stores sell books with their own version of copy protection anyway, so you wouldn't just be able to buy from anywhere: Nook books don't work on a Kobo and vice versa even though they're both ePub.
And an argument can be made that, considering the relative market share, maybe the other sellers should switch to Mobi -- which is the format underlying the Kindle specific format.
FWIW, Kindle also has apps for reading Kindle books on iThings, Android tablets and smartphones, and both Mac and Windows based computers. They've got a toehold on pretty much every portable device.
And, as for using Nook to read Kindle Books -- I believe both the Nook Color and Nook Smart Touch are android based and they've been 'rooted' to run the Kindle for Android App.
I'll also note that Amazon is extremely customer-centric. . . . that's why they're so generous in replacing damaged Kindles. Sure, it keeps the device in the hands of readers who can then buy more books. Obviously it is to their benefit: they want to turn a profit as much as the next guy. Their business model is to look at the long term and do their best to keep their customers happy so that they'll consider Amazon first for all their on line purchasing. Pretty smart, really.
So I have no doubt that Amazon is constantly looking at where they stand and what they do. . . .and if a significant majority of their Kindle customers wanted a certain feature, I think they'd look very seriously at implementing it. I believe, however, that KB represents only a very small percentage of all Kindle owners/users out there. So while some here may feel like 'everyone' is clamoring for ePub support or whatever, it's not really 'everyone' when you consider the huge numbers of Kindles that have been sold. It's probably only a tiny minority of their customers.
I know at least half a dozen people who own Kindles who don't give two hoots about format or DRM or anything else except that they can download and read tons of books on their Kindles. And if something breaks Amazon's got their back. That's really all they care about. None of them use the browser or PDF reader or text to speech -- a couple of them are probably not even aware those features exist! And, honestly, I think THOSE people are more representative of most Kindle owners than even the average KB member. . . . .
In conclusion. . . . I don't really see the concern about Amazon not offering ePub support. It's not like there are huge numbers of books only available in that format. And, for those that are, if they're not copy protected, they are easily converted. If they are copy protected. . . .you can still only read them on the reader for which they're intended. Just like Kindle books.
Kobo and Sony are a relatively small segment of the e-reader market. Nook is gaining. I don't think Amazon gains anything, particularly, by switching to or adding ePub support. All those stores sell books with their own version of copy protection anyway, so you wouldn't just be able to buy from anywhere: Nook books don't work on a Kobo and vice versa even though they're both ePub.
And an argument can be made that, considering the relative market share, maybe the other sellers should switch to Mobi -- which is the format underlying the Kindle specific format.
FWIW, Kindle also has apps for reading Kindle books on iThings, Android tablets and smartphones, and both Mac and Windows based computers. They've got a toehold on pretty much every portable device.
And, as for using Nook to read Kindle Books -- I believe both the Nook Color and Nook Smart Touch are android based and they've been 'rooted' to run the Kindle for Android App.
I'll also note that Amazon is extremely customer-centric. . . . that's why they're so generous in replacing damaged Kindles. Sure, it keeps the device in the hands of readers who can then buy more books. Obviously it is to their benefit: they want to turn a profit as much as the next guy. Their business model is to look at the long term and do their best to keep their customers happy so that they'll consider Amazon first for all their on line purchasing. Pretty smart, really.
So I have no doubt that Amazon is constantly looking at where they stand and what they do. . . .and if a significant majority of their Kindle customers wanted a certain feature, I think they'd look very seriously at implementing it. I believe, however, that KB represents only a very small percentage of all Kindle owners/users out there. So while some here may feel like 'everyone' is clamoring for ePub support or whatever, it's not really 'everyone' when you consider the huge numbers of Kindles that have been sold. It's probably only a tiny minority of their customers.
I know at least half a dozen people who own Kindles who don't give two hoots about format or DRM or anything else except that they can download and read tons of books on their Kindles. And if something breaks Amazon's got their back. That's really all they care about. None of them use the browser or PDF reader or text to speech -- a couple of them are probably not even aware those features exist! And, honestly, I think THOSE people are more representative of most Kindle owners than even the average KB member. . . . .
In conclusion. . . . I don't really see the concern about Amazon not offering ePub support. It's not like there are huge numbers of books only available in that format. And, for those that are, if they're not copy protected, they are easily converted. If they are copy protected. . . .you can still only read them on the reader for which they're intended. Just like Kindle books.
