Kindle, Oprah and Amazon proved to be a great combination to beat the global meltdown and recession. It proved to be a great commercial success against all odds with Amazon.com selling out 400,000 Kindles in total by 2008 according to an estimate by James McQuivey, an analyst at Forrester Research Inc. in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Oprah endorsement in October 2008 catapulted the sales revenue to new high in the last 3 months. Jeffrey Lindsay, an analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein, speculated the figure much higher, at about 450,000. In 2009, it may cross more than half a million mark according to Colin Sebastian, an analyst at Lazard Capital Markets.
Yes the official price of Kindle being $ 359, may not be called cheap, even if it means a one-time investment. But the sheer ability to download a book electronically from wherever you are has generated immense amount of mouth publicity and interest. Since its introduction in November 2007, the paperback-sized device that allows one to download books, magazines and newspapers, displaying them on a high-resolution contrast screen that resembles a real paper print, proved to be a successful niche product.
The popularity quotient is still on the rise and the Seattle-based company got sold out of stock ahead of this holiday season. Oprah Winfrey just re-kindled the demand multifold, with a timely pre-season kindle testimonial on her television show in October. And to add to it all was the $ 50 discount (drop the MRP to $ 309), that shoppers could avail on entering the coupon code "oprahwinfrey". Hundreds of bloggers and deal sites cashed in on the Oprah-Kindle $50 off coupon pushing the sales even more. Many critics who originally thought the Kindle wouldn't be received well because of its high price have been proved wrong especially after Oprah endorsement. Yes the timing was just apt for Amazon, which is now gearing up for a second breakthrough with kindle 2 upgrade. Indisputably Amazon stands out as the No. 1 online bookseller since 1994. Now with its scheduled release of a brand new Kindle 2.0 version in Q1 2009, it couldn't have been in a better off market position.
The utility of the product is pre-sold.
Everyone is convinced of its ingenuity.The Kindle buzz is in full swing.
The stocks have depleted creating a huge surge in demand.
Retailers are loaded with inquiries.
Customers are willing to put their names on the waiting list till the release (3 months as of today)
Kindle stock earned US $1,500 while other stocks were crashing
Yes, kindle sold as high as US $1,500 this holiday season unofficially due to the abrupt shortage even while real stock markets were crashing. With the Kindle in short supply and asking prices soaring up online, there have been instances where people sold off kindle electronic book readers, some of which were even received as gifts for thrice the retail price of $ 359. The proof could be found from purchases on Craigslist where buyers shelled out anything over US $500 and more. People who wanted to give it as a holiday gifts paid a premium to get it in time. The situation however worked for Amazon resulting in a steep upward spike in their kindle sales. People reasoned by saying, if the existing product could be sold at a profit while a better and new version could be bought within a span of two to three months, then it was worth selling them off now.
And eventually they will break even to have their own kindle for free. Though everything stands in favor of Amazon today, only thing it can't afford to do now is delay the product release long enough. The success has indeed got a few other multinationals and hi-end product manufacturers like Nintendo and eslick ebook reader building up competition. Amazon on its side is also expanding the amount of content read for its new Kindle, to offer more than 200,000 books, blogs and publications.
According to a recent survey, more than 50% American women are responsible for all online purchases. Imagine the impact of Oprah Winfrey to recommending a product to the womankind today? Or the man-kind for that matter. Come to think of it, Oprah has established herself as no-nonsense woman who speaks for people like you and me. And if she mentions kindle to be her "most favorite gadget" on her show, then the product must be worth every penny. I believe she can't jeopardize her worldwide reputation for the sake of endorsement bucks. Especially when her name figures amongst the richest people on earth. You may visit Oprah's website to watch the video of Bezos and Oprah giving a presentation called Kindle Class. Oprah Winfrey's recommendation of Kindle was double delight for many Kindle sellers this Christmas with a good turnaround.
The fact is that, there are a lot of wealthy people in the Silicon Valley, who cared more for the novelty and trendiness of the product as a gift than the asking price. People bought it like crazy breaking the supply chain of Amazon. Bidding wars broke out on used, brand new, unpacked and sealed kindles listed on eBay auctions. Craigslist and Amazon.com's second-hand product site had figures shooting up to US $1,500. Over 50 newspapers and hundreds of popular blogs wrote articles about Oprah and the kindle. All this means readied publicity and raised expectations. Amazon Kindle ebook reader and its future release is a must-experience for all book lovers and tech savvy, information hungry people. Are you as eager as me too?
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