Amazon to Start Giving Away Kindles
By Chris Weiss
Here’s a great way for Amazon to keep the Kindle competitive once the iPad hits the market: give it away for free. A piece in TechCrunch this morning says that the retailer wants to do just that, albeit to select customers.
Citing a “reliable source”, Michael Arrington says that Amazon is planning on rolling out a new program that will deliver Kindles to the doorsteps of all Amazon Prime subscribers–free of charge. As the thinking goes, the top-tier customers are likely to make up for the cost of the Kindle in e-books purchased over time. The move would also help prevent these loyal customers from unleashing their e-reading dollars elsewhere.
Amazon Prime offers subscribers free two-day shipping (and $3.99 one-day upgrades) on all purchases for a fee of $79/year. A free Kindle would definitely make the service a little tastier.
It sounds as though Amazon is still working through the details–details like how they’re going to ensure they don’t lose money in giving away their prized devices. Assuming they can get production costs down and recoup the money with book sales over time, this could be a go. [via TechCrunch]
