No data costs for Kindle in SA

Rudolph Muller

Rudolph Muller is the editor at MyBroadband and covers telecoms and broadband news. Rudolph comes from an academic background, but left the University of...

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Amazon Kindle Books Director Laura Porco confirmed today that South African users would not have to pay for data costs associated with book downloads, revealing that these were all “added into the cost of the device”.

Earlier this month Amazon announced that it would be releasing an international version of its Kindle eReader to 100 countries worldwide. These devices would ship with 3G connectivity which would allow users in all of the selected territories to download books from the Amazon Book store wirelessly. The company revealed that the wireless service would be supported by AT&T and its partner roaming networks in each country.

Porco said that all data charges overseas will be incorporated into the overall price when purchasing a book within the Amazon book store, adding that the $20 premium that the international model has over the US based Kindle will be used to subsidise a 3G GSM receiver within the device and connectivity costs associated with AT&T’s global support.

“No contracts, no SIM card”

This means that local Kindle users will not be required to purchase a network SIM card, airtime or take out a contract in order to download online books in South Africa. Kindle users need only turn their devices on and begin browsing the store and purchasing books said Porco.

The service will be provided on “Amazon’s back end”. It has not yet been announced whether MTN or Vodacom will carry the signal, although it has been confirmed that both operators are AT&T international roaming partners.

A Kindle email address will also be registered to the owner, through which they will be able to send themselves documents to be read on the device.

South African users will have access to a library of 230 000 English titles, 35 000 of which will be available “for under R44” said Porco. Best selling and newly released titles will be available for $11.99 (R88).

Porco added that Amazon is working on increasing the number of books available with “a vision to making every book ever published available in less than 60 seconds”.

Subscriptions to major international newspapers will also be available for $4.99 per week (R36), although no local publications are currently part of the catalogue.

Order and delivery

The Kindle is currently available for order on Amazon for $279 (R2,036) overseas, with a shipping fee of $20 (R147). This however does not include country specific VAT and customs charges.

Delivery time is 3 to 7 working days.

Kindle in SA – discussion