e-books: players and select deals
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Market Overview
November 2009 -- Marvell Technology Group Ltd. is collaborating with E Ink Corp., a developer of e-paper displays used in many digital-book readers. The companies are developing a "system on a chip" for e-book readers, combining functions that previously required separate chips onto one piece of silicon. The goal is to drive down component costs, thereby reducing e-book prices and increasing adoption.
October 2009 -- Spring Design announces Alex, the first e-book based on Google Android featuring full browser capabilities.
October 2009 – IREX strikes agreements with NewspaperDirect and LibreDigital (distributors of digital content) giving IREX users access to the most comprehensive collection of newspapers and magazines available in the eReader market.
October 2009 -- Barnes & Noble plans to launch its own e-book reader as this market heats up for the holiday season. The device will feature a 6-inch screen developed by E-Ink Corp and will run on the AT&T network.
June 2009 -- Prime View International Co. signed a definitive agreement to acquire E Ink Corporation for approximately $215 million in cash. E Ink's digital ink technology is used in applications, such as e-books, watches, and cell phones. E Ink's revenues sales were $18 million in the first quarter of 2009. Prime View has been E Ink's largest customer and uses E Ink technology in making the Amazon Kindle and Sony Reader. Prime View is now in control of more pieces of the e-reader solution stack.
March 2009 -- Barnes & Noble acquired Fictionwise, a publisher and distributor of e-books using various formats for PCs and handheld devices. The purchase price was $15.7 million in cash. The deals helps position Barnes & Noble in the e-book market as it competes with Amazon.com as a distributor of digital content. The deals helps position Barnes & Noble in the e-book market as it competes with Amazon.com as a distributor of digital content. Fictionwise also has a content-provider relationship with Plastic Logic, which has announced its own plans to release an e-reader later in 2009.
Copyright © 2010 George T. Geis. All Rights Reserved.