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Sony Has Sold Half a Million Sony Reader Wifi in Europe

Sony might be an also ran in the US ereader market but they’re having at least some success in Europe.  Actuallitte  is reporting today that Sony has sold 500 thousand of their newest ereader since they launched it back in August of 2011

That’s rather thin sales, considering the fact that the EU  alone has over 500 million people.  And it took Sony 8 months to sell 500k ereaders to that enormous mass. I would like to follow the practices of other blogs and talk about how great this sales figure is, but to be honest it sucks. When you put it in perspective it is almost embarrassing to Sony.

You almost have to ask why they’re still in this market, don’t you? The answer to that is simple: they don’t know when to quit. Sony is like that guy trapped in a hole.  All he knows to do is keep digging until he’s not in the hole anymore, rather than climbing out.

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Comments


Mike Cane May 25, 2012 um 4:20 pm

Yes, that’s a very small number of sales. I agree: Sony should exit. They got whupped by B&N with the Nook Touch.

Ani May 25, 2012 um 4:45 pm

The Nook is less than ideal in Europe, unless you love to side load books. Sony has an ebook store there. You can also download ebooks from Kobo (and a few other places) over the Sony’s built-in web browser.

fjtorres May 25, 2012 um 5:21 pm

Sony has a (recently opened) ebookstore in the UK.
Where else?


Ani May 25, 2012 um 7:45 pm

Last time I checked, the UK is part of Europe . Please, note that I used the singular in my original post. Some other sources for ebooks in Europe are Thalia, libri und Co, Bol.com.

fjtorres May 25, 2012 um 8:56 pm

Oh, I know there are dozens of generic ADEPT epub vendors in europe and they have been there long before Sony opened *their* WiFi-accessible store.
But they all feed the Sony via side-loading, which was the Nook’s "weakness" you were highlighting.
I’m thinking that if Sony was able to build a rabid (albeit small) following for their Pricey readers by relying on generic regional ebookstores, the cheaper Nook has a chance to do the same.
That’s all.
It’s not as if Sony offers up anything that Pocketbook, Bookeen, or any other ADEPT-based hardware-only vendor can’t match or better. Other than the brand stenciled on the plastic case.
I have a Sony T1 and it is quite useful–for running Coolreader3 and the Kindle android app. But I got it at US prices, which I understand are substantially cheaper than Sony’s european prices. At those prices, I’d be more tempted to go with a Pocketbook or Onyx.


Ingo Lembcke May 26, 2012 um 6:53 am

In Germany it was possible to pre-order late September/beginning of October if memory serves. I did that and got mine delivered October 28th 2011.
As long as Nook is not really available here (B & N just starting in Germany), I consider the Sony PRS-T1 to be as good as a Kindle and better than all other I have seen and can be bought here easily.
And even without rooting you can buy books from lots of places (browser is good). And if you know how to strip DRM and use Calibre you do not have to use the Sony Software.

You are right, the sales figures are just abysmal. I would regret it Sony where to quit, but, hey this is my second Sony Device (the first being the PRS-505 Reader) I do really like. If the Mac/PC-Software would just be better or the Shop available through every browser from a Computer/Tablet whatever. My first thought holding the PRS-T1 was: what would Apple have done better? The Software for sure.

Sadly an e-Ink Reader from Apple is not even rumored about, and the iPAD is great but not for simple reading (to big, to heavy).

I cannot list all the things Sony did wrong, if they ever advertised the Reader etc, but for me the worst thing is the Software for buying on the computer. I really like their (US) shop and prefer it to Kobo and most others, but despite a few bug-reports the software is worse that the previous version.

It will be a sad day for me should Sony finally pull the plug and leave the Reader market. And the Reader I own will still continue to function after that. But it’s Sony, so I do not expect that anytime soon.


Philip May 27, 2012 um 7:32 am

Here in Belgium, ereaders are still a niche item (sales predicted to treble this year to 3 ebooks out of every 10,000 books sold). My unscientific observation on the buses and trains is that the dominant brand is Sony, followed by Kindle. Nook is nowhere to be seen and when I asked B&N a few months ago they said they had no plans to sell books to addresses in Europe. 500 thousand units is a statement about ebook take-up in Europe, not about Sony per se. Sony offers more options for buying content in Europe than B&N or even Amazon. The real contest is in tablets where the choice is Apple or Samsung. I like my Sony ereader but for many people a tablet is a better, more versatile, choice.


Wozzie29 May 27, 2012 um 10:23 pm

Sony eReaders are the best because you can actually write notes, get authors' autographs, etc. Nobody else does this. Long live Sony eraders, I say! Now if we can get the same facilities in other devices, they may be in trouble, but until then… Sony all the way.


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