tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post3863337742929379263..comments2024-03-11T07:06:28.190-07:00Comments on Mobile Opportunity: Amazon vs. Apple? No, it's Amazon and Apple vs. Everyone ElseMichael Macehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comBlogger50125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-8449697719945974652011-11-02T23:44:44.258-07:002011-11-02T23:44:44.258-07:00"If the tablet manufacturers are smart, they&..."If the tablet manufacturers are smart, they'll build and price solutions aimed at China and India, where I doubt we'll see Kindles on sale well into 2020, at the rate things are going."<br /><br />Going for the China and India markets is a no...no... <br />Remember Samsung has more clout in Asia and Africa and is aggressively marketing its Samsung Tab in this market, with good results. It plans to triple its sales in Asia-Pacific and Africa region over the next three years. <br />I would say that is very strategic given the mobile penetration is currently at 65% and growing at 9% annually in that area.<br /><br />Then there are the Chinese brands like Huawei Ideos, 7" tablet and cost an amazing $200.<br /><br />Both of these run on Android so iPad, Motorola and the rest are great losers in this market.MobilityKenhttp://mobilekenyahub.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-17900402229119568832011-10-12T18:32:17.780-07:002011-10-12T18:32:17.780-07:00All nicely said, but I do feel rather left out in ...All nicely said, but I do feel rather left out in this, as I'm sure the Kindle Fire is going to be NorthAm/Western Europe only as late as five years after launch.<br /><br />If the tablet manufacturers are smart, they'll build and price solutions aimed at China and India, where I doubt we'll see Kindles on sale well into 2020, at the rate things are going.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-40244612177570047702011-10-12T13:10:13.924-07:002011-10-12T13:10:13.924-07:00I fully agree sir. Amazon and Apple are just two o...I fully agree sir. Amazon and Apple are just two of the corporate giants looking at 'world domination', leaving others to pick up scraps here and there and the little bits to do that they can't really be bothered with.<br /><br />Not exactly Davids vs Goliaths but along those lines, although this time I think Goliath might win!jason @ mobile website designhttp://www.tsw-systemsolutions.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-13765516100140947762011-10-07T16:53:11.591-07:002011-10-07T16:53:11.591-07:00Thanks for the comment, Eric.
Go read the Pew Res...Thanks for the comment, Eric.<br /><br />Go read the Pew Research report that I linked to. The e-reader vs. tablet numbers are in there. They survey consumers directly, so their numbers are far more reliable than any claims made by a manufacturer.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-69113213955684792672011-10-07T16:21:27.568-07:002011-10-07T16:21:27.568-07:00"Already about 40% of tablet owners also own ..."Already about 40% of tablet owners also own e-readers according to Pew Research (link), and I expect that percentage to increase. "<br /><br />The only reason I own a Kindle is for eInk. The Fire doesn't have eInk, therefore there is no reason for me to own it as well as the iPad.<br /><br />And as for the comment about eReaders selling more than tablets - citation please. Apple publishes their sales numbers. Unless I have missed something huge, Amazon has yet to publish their sales numbers.EricEnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-45381443078473419512011-10-03T15:24:32.701-07:002011-10-03T15:24:32.701-07:00"Apple sells content to help sell its main pr..."Apple sells content to help sell its main product, devices; as opposed to Amazon selling devices to help sell its main product, content."<br />Yes, but Apple's prices puts an upper limit on digital content, leaving very small profits for everybody else to subsidize devices. Amazon sells physical goods, too, but I am not sure if people would end up buying more from Amazon just because they own a Fire.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-14430979525523479472011-10-03T15:17:50.685-07:002011-10-03T15:17:50.685-07:00"I am also sure Google will recognize this pr..."I am also sure Google will recognize this product as the death knell for other Android tablets and may move to place legal obstacles in front of Amazon to protect its business model. This is just starting to get interesting." <br />This is not the first time somebody took Android and removed Google services from it. Google may have managed to push out Skyhook, but there are phones that use Bing as the exclusive search engine. Baidu has announced its own Android fork, as well. Amazon is no more a mortal threat than the others before it.Tatilnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-63334719185850653162011-10-03T02:02:18.075-07:002011-10-03T02:02:18.075-07:00Amazon is dipping its toe into the post-PC world w...Amazon is dipping its toe into the post-PC world with the Fire (and boosting its already successful e-ink Kindles with a solid refresh). There's talk that Amazon will almost certainly release different form-factors of the Fire in 2012.<br /><br />There's potentially an even bigger implication if we play out the following hypothesis:<br /><br />Compare Amazon to Apple on its most simplistic level: Apple sells content to help sell its main product, devices; as opposed to Amazon selling devices to help sell its main product, content.<br /><br />Apple launched the iPhone in 2007; it then built on that success with the launch of the iPad in 2010. How about Amazon launching the Fire in 2011 followed by a mobile phone (the 'Spark'??) in 2012 or 2013? Now that would be interesting...Mike Paynenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-55287809199900743022011-10-02T09:52:57.798-07:002011-10-02T09:52:57.798-07:00Several interesting comments here.
"Michael ...Several interesting comments here.<br /><br />"Michael surely you don't think Amazon is better protected than Samsung, Motorola or HTC in patents?"<br /><br />No, but they are not blatantly copying Apple either. The small handful they infringe, they will likely just pay Apple $5 a device and move on.<br /><br />I saw reports that Amazon didn't describe WHICH version of Android it'd used. I'll guess 2.2 Froyo<br /><br />Yes.<br /><br />Google will recognize this product as the death knell for other Android tablets and may move to place legal obstacles in front of Amazon to protect its business model.<br /><br />Not sure how... Google open sourced the software they used, and Amazon purposely did not use any of the higher end code that they did not open source. <br /><br />Everything you do in Sllk goes through the servers of a retailer. Imagine the power of a retailer that has records of all of the shopping you have done at it's competitors - everything from "just browsing" to "making purchases". And records of how you spend your leisure time on line. And what you chat with your social media pals about. Amazon could give the Fire away for free - they will more than make their money back in marketing intelligence and targeting.<br /><br />Hell, they can even cut google out of search revenue game with this model.<br /><br />Good point!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-55393840291223684272011-10-02T02:30:44.599-07:002011-10-02T02:30:44.599-07:00Though Amazon will make some money from selling co...Though Amazon will make some money from selling content (i.e., media, ebooks, app, etc.), neither Amazon or anyone else is likely to get monopoly or oligopoly rents from the distribution of content. Amazon's play for greater than competitive rents from its Kindles is collecting and trading in its customers' personal data that it acquires from customers who use its Kindles. Revenue from trading its customers' personal data can subsidize the Kindle Fire, and it can do so quickly.<br /><br />Amazon's longer term road to profits is, as you say, supra, using the Kindles as a means of locking customers to its distribution system for sell content. The success of that strategy will depend on the success of the Kindles, especially the Kindle Fire, and on whether the Kindles, especially the Fire, only permit distribution of content from Amazon. Will Google and/or Apple every try to put apps on the Kindle Fire to capture distribution of content and services for their respective ecosystems?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-30274517058170418802011-10-01T17:32:47.139-07:002011-10-01T17:32:47.139-07:00with great network existing for Amazon world wide,...with great network existing for Amazon world wide, no need any carriers. That is the winning Fire formula. No body can duplicate that easily (Apple can not do it without damage its relationship with carrier. Everybody else is locked in, except Amazon). Bravo!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-3480621989825146232011-09-30T22:03:06.427-07:002011-09-30T22:03:06.427-07:00Hamranhansenhansen wrote:
>>The thing I dis...<b>Hamranhansenhansen wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>The thing I disagree with here is that iPad at $500 is a lifestyle choice or investment. </i><br /><br />Your points about PCs are valid, but there's a basic truth about how consumers approach purchases. They think long and hard about buying something for $500, no matter what it is. For most people, you have to discuss that sort of purchase with your spouse, and you would never buy it on a whim.<br /><br />But below $199, people start to act much more on impulse. It's a totally different psychology, and that's what Amazon is clearly going to tap into with the new Kindles.<br /><br />Watch this Christmas. E-book readers are already outselling tablets, and that will continue, if not accelerate. Doesn't mean one is beating the other; they are just two different worlds.<br /><br /><br /><b> Brian Gillespie wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>Michael surely you don't think Amazon is better protected than Samsung, Motorola or HTC in patents? All of which are slowly losing their battles. Also the Oracle problem is not only patents, but copyright infringement as well. </i><br /><br />Fair enough, Brian. We're both making predictions based on our own assumptions, when we don't have all the data we need. In particular, we do not know the details of the Microsoft agreement (is Kindle Fire covered or not?), and we do not know if Amazon's patent portfolio is strong enough to make Apple and Oracle hesitate before suing.<br /><br />Knowing how long Amazon has been doing patent deals, I personally believe they will be prepared for this issue. But I do not know that for a fact.<br /><br />And by the way, yes, I am positive Amazon has a better patent portfolio than HTC. Far, far, far better.<br /><br /><br /><i>>>Something to look into Michael, is this why Google kept the Honeycomb code private? </i><br /><br />It's a great question. I'd also like to understand exactly what obligations Google has to release its code, when. I don't know enough about IP law to answer that.<br /><br /><br /><i>>>Also this might have been a major contributing factor in the Motorola purchase. Google is the only other company with the resources to do a complete solution like Apple and Amazon. The only thing they lacked was Google brand hardware. </i><br /><br />The Moto purchase is like an ink blot test. We can read all sorts of intentions into it. Some of them are right, but which ones?<br /><br /><br /><b>Brian Gillespie wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>You know what Michael, the more I think about this, the more I think this is just a stopgap while Amazon works out a deal for WebOS.</i><br /><br />You have a devious mind, Brian. I like that. But I'm not with you on this particular issue. I think Amazon had a very robust plan in place before HP decided to kill Web OS. I would not be surprised if Amazon bought Web OS, but I think it would be more for bits and pieces of technology that could be melded into Amazon's products, plus the IP.<br /><br />Heck, even the Palm brand would be useful, and I bet HP would throw that in for free.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-22100128123460527132011-09-30T22:00:29.534-07:002011-09-30T22:00:29.534-07:00TDC wrote:
>>I wonder if samsung's gala...<b>TDC wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>I wonder if samsung's galaxy note will give the push your looking for in the infopad</i><br /><br />Not that I've seen. I don't think they have the software chops to make it work right.<br /><br /> <br /><b>Anonymous wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>> If I was Google I would give Amazon a run for its money by giving content producers an even more attractive option than Amazon with less than 30% fee. </i><br /><br />That would certainly be a very sensible move for Google. Since Amazon is using store revenue to subsidize the hardware, make the store into a commodity and you'll destroy Amazon's financial model.<br /><br />That's the way Google used to operate -- if a company is in the way, commoditize it to death and sell ads on the wreckage.<br /><br />I don't know if Google still has the wisdom (and the courage) to do this, but it's what they should do.<br /><br /><br /><b>Andy Norris wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>It's interesting that you lump Microsoft in with the other companies being left out in the cold by this, because Microsoft is the only other company executing a unique strategy in the tablet space. </i><br /><br />Andy, I am fascinated by Windows 8, and if it were shipping today I'd be very high on Microsoft's chances. But when is it coming out? Online reports say it'll be <i>late next year</i> at the earliest. Amazon and Apple are evolving so fast that Microsoft may be rendered irrelevant by that time. It's like dinosaurs vs. bacteria.<br /><br /> <br /><b>truenorthbbq wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>Silk is definitely the most important part of all of this. But you have missed the real reason why: Everything you do in Sllk goes through the servers of a retailer. </i><br /><br />That was why I linked to Chris Espinosa's post. I didn't see the sense in repeating what he said, but I should have made that more clear.<br /><br />And yes, I agree with you.<br /><br /><br /><b>Drywall wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>What's with the two spaces after periods? </i><br /><br />I think it looks fly, Drywall. Live with it.<br /><br /><br /><b>Anonymous wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>Microsoft has tried pushing a desktop OS as a tablet for years and has nothing to show for it. What makes you think W8 will be any different? </i><br /><br />Because I think it looks fly. (<a href="http://mobileopportunity.blogspot.com/2011/06/windows-8-beginning-of-end-of-windows.html" rel="nofollow">link</a>)Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-4026668023002437802011-09-30T21:57:03.424-07:002011-09-30T21:57:03.424-07:00As so often happens, I think the comments here are...As so often happens, I think the comments here are becoming more interesting than my original post. Thanks for all your ideas, everybody.<br /><br />I can't respond to everything, but a few thoughts...<br /><br /> <br /><b>Tatil wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>Maybe, they can sell their inventory to Amazon. :) I hear the hardware is pretty much the same as Playbook, but priced $300 less. </i><br /><br />I read those reports too, but I'm not sure the commentators really understood how the ODM world works. They have all sorts of motherboard designs and off the shelf product designs that they can adapt for you. That doesn't mean they'll be copying any proprietary work they did for another vendor, but they'll certainly reuse any standard designs that they had used as the basis for someone else's product.<br /><br /><br /><i>>>There are also rumors that Amazon is subsidizing many ebooks to gain a dominant marketshare early on. </i><br /><br />They were for a while, but then the book publishers forced them to stop it. There have, however, been notorious cases of Amazon giving away mobile apps to get its software store established, and in the process destroying the perceived value of the developers' products. I've read some amazingly angry commentary about that from mobile developers.<br /><br /><br /><b>Anonymous wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>Does this not mean that Google will now enter the hardware race, at least in tablets?....An acquisition of a retailer also makes sense from their side. B&N? Overstock? Google needs a retail presence if they want to push the sales of their own Android 'experience'. </i><br /><br />What a slippery slope Google is on. Once they decide they have to be like Apple, they are obligated to duplicate all the parts of Apple, none of which they can run as well as Apple does. It would be like Atlantic City trying to copy Las Vegas. Don't do it, Larry.<br /><br /><br /><b>Tatil wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>Some call Android the moat strategy for Google to protect its search and advertising revenue in mobile. Now it needs a moat to protect the moat? Oh, boy... </i><br /><br />Nicely put.<br /><br /><br /><b>Gabor Torok wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>>Is my guess really wild to picture Facebook soon joining the Apple-Amazon duopoly with their different kind of content repository: people? </i><br /><br />Yikes. I hope they're wise enough to understand that they do not need their own hardware. They have enough other control points.<br /><br /><br /><b>Glenn Bachmann wrote:</b><i><br /><br />>> How will this play out moving ahead for app developers who want to support multiple variations of Android? </i><br /><br />Amazon claims it will take on the work of making sure the apps can run unchanged. We'll see. It'll be very hard to avoid forking at some time.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-32364110768546923232011-09-30T20:55:06.730-07:002011-09-30T20:55:06.730-07:00You know what Michael, the more I think about this...You know what Michael, the more I think about this, the more I think this is just a stopgap while Amazon works out a deal for WebOS.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10977654692180719636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-4094810418224395072011-09-30T20:43:06.357-07:002011-09-30T20:43:06.357-07:00Michael surely you don't think Amazon is bette...Michael surely you don't think Amazon is better protected than Samsung, Motorola or HTC in patents? All of which are slowly loosing their battles. Also the Oracle problem is not only patents, but copyright infringement as well. <br /><br />Anyway, it will be exciting to see this unfold. Everyone recognizes the Fire as a game changer. With on fell swoop Amazon has cut the tablet market in to two distinct parts while cutting out the other OEMs. There are a bunch of businesses who won't want the game to be changed this way. <br /><br />Something to look into Michael, is this why Google kept the Honeycomb code private? Also this might have been a major contributing factor in the Motorola purchase. Google is the only other company with the resources to do a complete solution like Apple and Amazon. The only thing they lacked was Google brand hardware.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10977654692180719636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-10000019586286254832011-09-30T19:39:50.381-07:002011-09-30T19:39:50.381-07:00Microsoft and Amazon reached a patent cross-licens...Microsoft and Amazon reached a patent cross-licensing agreement in 2010 that involves Kindles that existed at the time (as well as the Linux operating system).That agreement apparently does not cover Android.<br /><br />Microsoft declined earlier this week to comment on whether it intends to either talk with, or a file a lawsuit against, Amazon over its new Android-based tablet.<br /><br />http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/microsoftpri0/2016366318_amazon_in_talks_to_buy_palm_perhaps_to_avoid_payin.htmlAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-61732749085096937552011-09-30T18:49:03.919-07:002011-09-30T18:49:03.919-07:00Wow, these are great comments. I'll come back...Wow, these are great comments. I'll come back later and answer more of them, but I wanted to respond to Brian's thought on patents.<br /><br />It turns out Amazon signed a cross-license agreement with Microsoft back in February 2010. This is one of the things I like about Amazon -- they plan ahead.<br /><br />As for Apple and Oracle (and Google for that matter), I believe that Amazon has accumulated a few patents of its own in the process of creating AWS, not to mention its notorious set of e-commerce patents. I think it's probably well-enough armed that it can deter a patent attack.Michael Macehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17966107280587843091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-71295377940585417262011-09-30T17:35:45.555-07:002011-09-30T17:35:45.555-07:00The thing I disagree with here is that iPad at $50...The thing I disagree with here is that iPad at $500 is a lifestyle choice or investment. iPad is a PC, not a media player, not a phone. People are spending their notebook PC money on iPads, not their iPod money. It is not a media player, it is a low-end PC. That is the market it sells in. It is the mythical $500 Mac that so many said would be Apple's only way to really take significant market away from Windows. It's the "marketshare Mac." Notice which Mac disappeared from the lineup after iPad debuted: the MacBook (white,) which is the successor to iBook. iPad is just an iBook.<br /><br />There is much proof of this:<br /><br />• without counting iPad, the PC market shrinks unexpectedly after the iPad launch, but count iPad as a PC and it grows by the expected amount<br />• Acer did not just coincidentally take their first loss last quarter, they were murdered by iPad because they make notebooks whose main feature is small, but which are huge compared to iPad<br />• users have been surveyed: 80% bought instead of a notebook, and 10% bought it as their first computer ever, that is 90% buying it to be a PC<br />• 90% of iPad users were satisfied, so they got what they were expecting, which for 90% was a PC<br />• the biggest reason non-Apple tablets were returned (in large numbers) is the user expected it to replace a PC and it did not, it was just another phone, that is the reason they gave<br /><br />Kindle has been described before as an iPod for books. That is clearly still the case with Kindle Fire. It lacks a PC class screen, PC class OS, and PC class apps like iPad. That means most users will still need to buy a notebook PC. That makes Kindle Fire *more* expensive than an iPad. The cheapest choice is to just make your next PC purchase an iPad. When iPad goes truly standalone and goes quad-core this year, we are going to see that be even more popular.Hamranhansenhansennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-47336385968875349742011-09-30T16:54:55.947-07:002011-09-30T16:54:55.947-07:00Not so fast Michael. Amazon may have some challeng...Not so fast Michael. Amazon may have some challenges before the Fire is in the hands of the public. Having chosen Android both Apple and Oracle can be expected to ask for an injunction against the Fire. Microsoft will surely ask for licensing fees further raising the cost of the Fire. I am also sure Google will recognize this product as the death knell for other Android tablets and may move to place legal obstacles in front of Amazon to protect its business model. This is just starting to get interesting.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10977654692180719636noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-69051106647369221922011-09-30T16:24:32.693-07:002011-09-30T16:24:32.693-07:00Microsoft has tried pushing a desktop OS as a tabl...Microsoft has tried pushing a desktop OS as a tablet for years and has nothing to show for it. What makes you think W8 will be any different?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-90226674858086160912011-09-30T16:18:22.098-07:002011-09-30T16:18:22.098-07:00roughlydrafted.com thinks that the Kindle Fire wil...roughlydrafted.com thinks that the Kindle Fire will torch the Android tablet market for reasons similar to those presented here.James Thielehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04335807773215473429noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-61244711654861190042011-09-30T15:00:37.160-07:002011-09-30T15:00:37.160-07:00Indeed, it's Google that should be the most fe...Indeed, it's Google that should be the most fearful. Amazon has absconded with the family jewels.<br /><br />Apple sells devices and hopes you'll use them to do stuff. So they encourage developers to make stuff to do. Some of that is media, and in that window they compete with Amazon just like they did with the e-ink Kindle. But the Fire is not going to compete with iPad as a pseudo-laptop. <br /><br />Amazon sells stuff and hopes you'll use their devices that are aimed at their stuff. The Fire is at it's heart a modern Sears catalog, with the capability for instant gratification. It is a well designed device that enhances Amazon's current businesses, and they can afford to even lose money on the sale of each one.<br /><br />So Apple is relatively unaffected. Amazon wins big...<br /><br />The real loser here is Google. <br /><br />Google sells eyeballs. Their customers sell their own stuff to us, and Google makes money when they put their customers in front of us. So Google does like the TV networks, they give stuff away as bait for eyeballs. Android is one of those things they give away. <br /><br />They do this with Android in exchange for placing all of their eyeball-generating software in front of the device-using public (as opposed to the PC-using public. They already own that space, but it is devices that are growing so fast.) Google search, mail, maps, the Android Marketplace... <br /><br />Except that Amazon is not interested in using the Fire for that. They took Android, alright, the latest free version (2.3). They built their own environment sans Google. They have forked Android and are using it basically as a BIOS, or underlying OS, on top of which is Amazon's stuff. Nary a peek at Google software. And, just as importantly, they have developed their own Android marketplace so that they don't have to go to Google even for that.<br /><br />Amazon has taken Google's dowery without even the promise of a date, much less marriage.sscutchenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18225780244410063323noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-80721044807205296952011-09-30T14:40:31.318-07:002011-09-30T14:40:31.318-07:00Amazon has pretty low margins on everything it sel...Amazon has pretty low margins on everything it sells, but it makes a good profit due to its scale and volume, like WalMart and Costco. It acquires goods at low prices and gets lots of inventory turns in its warehouses.<br /><br />So although the Kindle Fire aims to help Amazon dominate digital sales, its real goal is to help Amazon dominate all online sales. Kindle Fire and Silk are intended to make it easier (frictionless) for consumers to get to Amazon.com and its non-digital goods. No slow-to-start, harder-to-maintain, sit-at-a-desk PC involved. Note that Amazon pairs video streaming with Amazon Prime (free two-day shipping).<br /><br />So both Apple and Amazon are using low-priced, low-margin digital content to sell something else; for Apple, it is its devices, for Amazon, it is its non-digital goods. The disruption Amazon is focused on is in retail. <br /><br />Amazon will continue to make its storefront available on all mobile and PC devices. But the Kindle Fire and Silk slows (or even blocks) expansion into the retail commerce space by Apple and Google from the device and advertising/search businesses, respectively. For that's where NFC, digital money, and iTunes/Checkout accounts are leading them into. <br /><br />kevinAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-17898384.post-81896634314195051682011-09-30T14:09:18.251-07:002011-09-30T14:09:18.251-07:00What's with the two spaces after periods?What's with the two spaces after periods?Drywallhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10572871602925860606noreply@blogger.com