Since the iPad has been announced, the question arises: What is the role for other eBooks?

 

The majority of the eReaders shown at CES (News - Alert) were not too different from the Kindle and the Nook.

 

Now that Apple (News - Alert) has expanded the concept of the category, where is the opportunity for differentiation?

 

Amazon’s purchase of Touchco indicates an interest in getting a more interactive feel as the next phase for the Kindle. The current version of the Kindle is not a multimedia machine. The addition of the Touchco technology could represent a different form of display and a more Web-friendly version of the Kindle.
 

Meanwhile, at Barnes and Noble, the board itself is becoming a focal point as Mr. Burkle looks to increase his shares and avoid the company’s poison pill.

 

The indication of the eBook market is that there is a general view that the opportunity is still wide open. Unlike the music industry, the issues of digital rights have not been as dramatic a concern, so the Apple DRM is not necessarily as significant.

 

However, it’s probably safe to say that Steve Jobs (News - Alert) would not have been as effective with music if he had not been doing Pixar and concerned about maximizing that revenue. From there, the relationship with Disney gave him a membership in the media world. He was not offering a technology; he was trying to make money.

 

From movies to music, it’s safe to say that books are also part of the media, since many movies represent a second life for a book after its been published.

 

The question of eBooks then becomes how interactive will they become and how blended will this multimedia be displayed. Could you go from movie to book to music?

 

My initial impression of the iPad was not that it was an eReader but a substitute for my TV. Following that reasoning, the interactive side could become intriguing.

 

It may be that Microsoft (News - Alert) was pretty close with Encarta, and they just should have enabled a single device.

 

But the most glaring questions are: How interactive should we expect these devices to be and how should we expect that interaction to be networked?

 

If the devices are closed, that’s one thing, but the reality is that we are much closer to the online gaming industry’s models right now thanks to Apple’s iPad.

 

A friend of mine recently was recruited from the gaming industry into the e-learning market. Does the e-learner have to make its own device, establish an exclusive deal, or need a clearinghouse to interface with all these devices?

 

It maybe that this is the biggest market opportunity to provide the any to any of the Internet to a fragmented device driven market.