Amazon made its long-awaited move into the international market, announcing last night that it will begin shipping a new device with U.S. and international wireless access October 19. The new Kindle, priced at $279, will be available in more than 100 countries, Amazon said, and will have more than 200,000 English-language books. Amazon also said it is lowering the price of its U.S.-only Kindle from $299 to $259. The U.S. Kindle now has more than 350,000 titles available, with Lonely Planet one of the newest publishers to sign on.
Titles for the international Kindle come from a wide array of publishers, including Bloomsbury, Canongate, Faber and Faber, HarperCollins and Quercus. A major holdout is Random House, though spokesperson Stuart Applebaum told the New York Times the company was in discussions with Amazon. The e-tailer said more than 1,000 rights holders now have books available through the Kindle store. The international Kindle will also carry a number of foreign newspapers.
