Instead of loading up with pounds and pounds of printed textbooks and instructors' assigned materials at the college bookstore, students will simply purchase and download their semesters' books onto their e-readers. The student market is, of course, primed for digital content consumption. That generation is far more likely to give up printed textbooks for e-readers than is the typical Stephen King fan likely to give up printed books. There will be far more resistance to using e-readers for consumer titles than there will be resistance by the student and trade book reader communities. News is where it's at, folks The other colossal mistake by the e-reader industry is the downplaying of news.
Books are what are marketed most prominently.
Gemstar is working with a handful of newspaper and magazine publishers, who offer their content for sale to eBook users. What's missing, of course, is the ability to purchase a single copy of the Monitor , or a single copy of Fast Company on the eBook device. As e-readers proliferate in the years to come, it will become commonplace for newspaper and magazine readers to opt for this portable digital reading over print. Of course, no one really knows how consumers will react to e-reader offerings. But it makes sense that newspaper and magazine reading is better suited for these devices than lengthy books.