Where is Amazon going with the Kindle?

[iAlexG]

I can understand why the Kindle is becoming more popular but what about the books you already own? Its great that titles for Kindle are cheaper and there are sooo many just like going to the book store but what about the ones on your bookshelves?
If I was to justify $259 for a Kindle 2 then I would really have to have a way to get the books on my shelves on the Kindle.
Amazon should offer a service of scanning the barcode with a webcam or something to be able to get Kindle versions of books you already own. I have bought loads of books from Amazon and I do read them again, if i was to buy a Kindle I would like to have those books on there without re-purchasing.

Anyone else got any thoughts on this?

[jessica.]

While it is a good idea your theory could prove true for say CDs. If I own the tape then I should have not had to buy the CD. Or if I own the DVD then I should have over 300 Blu-ray movies today.

The thought process here is that technology advances and with that the medium in which your content is delivered will constantly change. While music and movies change more frequently (though infrequently if you think about it), books have come a long way without really hitting many milestones. It was paper then an eBook, now Kindle which is basically still an eBook reader. The point is, you've owned your books, enjoyed them, but now you're ready to streamline your content, have it provided for you right there, save space and trees or bushes, and generally give you a great experience that you couldn't get years back.

Do I agree? Perhaps. Perhaps though I could see Amazon offering you a discount on the Kindle version if you own the book or if you bought the book from them. In my case, I buy a lot of books at B&N, I love going there and getting lost. Purchases made on Amazon have been planned purchases and consisted mostly of textbooks while in college.

All of this is just a thought and really I doubt Amazon will change much here.

[MisterMe]

Kindle is Amazon.com, the larger online bookseller, in your hand. "All types of competition" means nothing without a source of content. Sony and those overseas products do not have the infrastructure and no way to develop the infrastructure to provide content. OTOH, Apple has the model for developing content infrastructure quickly, the iTunes Music Store. In fact, the iTMS already sells audio versions of numerous books. If Apple releases a tablet and if Apple targets digital books, then it can be expected to quickly provide numerous titles—books, magazines, newspapers. In that event, the Kindle would still be supported by Amazon.com, but its other competitors would be toast.