More on TechnologyTell: Gadget News | Apple News
The folly of wireless ‘exclusives’: Bad idea for e-books
April 27, 2006 | 5:38 pm
|
By David Rothman
Sprint’s bought exclusive wireless rights to Monday Night Football.
Good news not for consumers. What if the same idea balkanizes the market for e-books targeted at cellphones?
Oh, well, isn’t this yet another argument for e-book standards offering scalability so a book can be readable on everything from a cellphone to a 32-inch monitor? Why limit a book’s audience to a particular phone or phones, period?
Bob Russell at Mobile Read has warned against the possibility of mobile-only content in a general context–not likely but something to guard against–and I’d express the same concerns about e-books in particular.
Ideally a large-scale threat of this kind will be only theoretical. Special “exclusive” deals could backfire mightily against publishers, not just consumers.
Reminder: You can read the TeleBlog on your WAP phone. Wireless rights eternally unsold!
Related: David Faucheux’s review of Cell, the Stephen King novel.
|
Previous
SUBSCRIBE TO RSS
Comments:
“Why limit a book’s audience to a particular phone or phones, period?”
To provide an incentive to get people to use your service. There is not a lot of brand loyalty in the wireless market, and why should there be? Anybody’s phone will connect to anybody else’s phone (unless you’re AT&T in my market, where phone calls connect 50% of the time!).
Expect to see a lot more of this.
Actually, Richard, I’ve got a more radical idea. Why can’t cellphone companies compete to offer better service? I can’t tell you all the horrors I’ve suffered. AT&T isn’t the only one with the problem. Lower prices would help as well.
Meanwhile I’ll continue to speak out against ideas that could further balkanize the e-book market. I think this is one of them. Just IMHO.
Thanks,
David