Amazon is introducing a new, cheaper version of its hot-selling Kindle e-book reader... for anyone willing to deal with a few ads. The $114 "Kindle with Special Offers" will display sponsored ads on the screensaver and at the bottom of the home screen, but not inside e-books. Is a $25 discount from Kindle's $139 model worth the intrusion?
This is very, very smart: This innovation is "really simply genius" on Amazon's part, says Eric Savitz in Forbes. First of all, "it's a Kindle for the budget-limited," meaning a boost in market share. And because the ads will have a Groupon-like focus on discounts, Amazon has managed to turn "advertising into a bonus" for readers. Plus, by getting readers to vote on ads, Amazon gets "unpaid focus group members." Genius.
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