Classic debate: Is it better to be first to market, arrive early to capitalise on an emerging market, or launch late once the rules become apparent and the market has started to mature.
Two years after Amazon started selling the Kindle there have been an avalanche of E-Reader launchesat this year's Consumer Electronics Show. Amazon's has its own unique file format, some can download the new Google format, some are fast, some are slow, some are funky … but ironically, none is as eagerly awaited as Apple's rumoured tablet. Not strictly an E-Reader at all, but a multifunctional device capable or delivering books, music, maybe even TV.
It's not even certain that the Apple tablet exists, but already pundits are suggestingthat it (unlike the book readers which appeal mostly to book-worms like me) has the potential to save paid-for newspapers & magazines, kick-start genuine augmented reality and even launch tele-commuting into the mainstream. heady stuff.
So maybe the answer (at least as long as you are apple) is that it is better to arrive late!
