Comments on: Amazon shows media companies the future of the web

By: Jim

Jim — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 17:48:20 +0000

There is a product called Phone Gap that lets you integrate HTML5 with lower level device functions like GPS and Contacts, etc via javascript that calls backend code. It also works on android and other mobile platforms. I just evaluated it for work.

By: joe patel

joe patel — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 10:16:39 +0000

How do I read the books when I don’t have internet connection? That’s a great idea segment yourself to people who can afford internet connection at the beach or train.

By: Ruchit Garg

Ruchit Garg — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 05:11:36 +0000

HTML5 is no brainer, but it needs more love from standards perspective. HTML5 stuff which works well on PC doesnt work on ipad without doing custom stuff.

By: Mathew Ingram

Mathew Ingram — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 01:57:22 +0000

That’s a great point, Mike.

By: cabdriverjim

cabdriverjim — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 00:19:38 +0000

I’m not sure if you are aware but Kindle books ARE standalone HTML “apps”. Its easy to overlook this fact if you are using publishing software tailored to creating mobi/kindle books. I’ve noticed most tools hide that fact behind word processors and hand waving. But ultimately all your content is distilled down to a compressed package of HTML and assets. It would take Amazon very little effort to expand the current Kindle file format to integrate with the new HTML5-based Cloud reader. In fact, I’m not certain it would require any extra effort aside from documentation telling publishers how to do it.

Hosting your content within HTML5 websites under your own control and foregoing Kindle altogether… That, I suspect, would cost more than royalties for those with a small following. Because then you’re having to do your own web hosting, web design, web app development, advertising, etc. Not to mention that Kindle publisher accounts have access to an impressive array of free and discounted publishing resources and services. Nevermind the huge advertising benefit of being in the Kindle book store itself. And you have the option to offer printed copies of your books, with the added effort of reformatting for print, through Amazon proper.

By: Jason

Jason — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 23:58:22 +0000

So what is the ultimate benefit of a native app? You get control of core device functionality. The other benefit is local storage. But as Amazon’s Kindle Cloud demonstrates, an HTML 5 app taking advantage of the web kit’s connectivity to such things as the device’s storage (that’s how it stores cookies), provides that as well. I would propose that it will only take a smart developer to create a piece of middleware that is provided through the traditional app store (in Amazon’s case, call it “whispersync”) that bridges the web kit with the native device APIs. Once that happens, web apps will be able to get access to some of the device’s core functionality. This is a real game changer for mobile apps in general but, especially, Apple.

http://blog.jasonthibeault.com/index.php/2011/08/10/review-hands-on-with-amazons-kindle-cloud/

http://blog.jasonthibeault.com/index.php/2011/08/10/a-sign-of-things-to-come-for-mobile-apps-apples-appstore/

By: Mike Meyer

Mike Meyer — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 22:07:17 +0000

I also want to point out that Amazon’s HTML5 app helps maintain their walled garden approach — if your DRM’d book files basically exist on Amazon’s cloud, the question of cracking and sharing the files goes away. Make no mistake, this is as much (if not more) a land grab as Apple’s IAP policy.

By: Mike Meyer

Mike Meyer — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 22:01:42 +0000

Apple’s policy around the in-app purchasing requirements is skewed towards the independent content creator rather than aggregators. The idea is ‘if we bring the eyeballs to your product, then we get the 30%’. That’s a really good deal in comparison to almost every old content business model — magazine, comic, and book publishing and the old mobile app distribution model all required a large tribute to intermediaries. Even shrinkwrap software sales had a model where the content producer saw very little of the sales price (retailer gets half, distributor gets most of the remaining half.)

Amazon, however, is not just another publisher or aggregator. They have the ability to attract eyeballs all on their own, and don’t really need Apple.
They also have the resources to deploy a high-quality HTML5-based app, so this is a very reasonable way for them to reach customers and provide a seamless buying experience. If this app takes advantage of Safari’s HTML5 offline storage, it lacks very little in comparison to the native app.

Also, avoiding the fragmentation issue altogether and providing an experience that supports all flavors of tablets is a great move for them.

What remains to be seen is whether the rumored Kindle Tablet will use this same HTML5 app, or provide a native app. Since several of Amazon’s iOS apps seem to be wrapped around HTML5 anyway, it may end up being both.

By: Mike Meyer

Mike Meyer — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 21:44:42 +0000

Location data is available in Mobile Safari as well.

By: Embarkd

Embarkd — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 19:43:22 +0000

The problem that is missing in the above: doing a stand-alone HTML5 app can work for a player like FT and others who have a network (essentially their own marketplace) to begin with. As a small publisher, I now sell more Kindle copies for some titles than print copies. If those titles were stand alone web apps, I don’t think I would be able to sell at that level. Will someone create a marketplace for HTML5 reading content, making them discoverable by potential readers, supporting and developing the platform, and *not* charge a royalty?