e-Ink Holdings, the company responsible for the e-paper technology found in most e-readers, is not concerned about tablet computers. The company announced today that they are going to continue their record setting growth well into October. The company’s profits are up 83.14% from this time last year.
The company mentioned in an interview that they expect to ship out 25-30 million e-ink display screens in October alone. The main markets for this technology? It seems that the USA and Europe have an insatiable desire for e-ink based readers. Considering Amazon and Barnes & Noble are selling ebooks at a 2:1 ratio vs. print books, it makes sense.
e-Ink Holdings is doing quite well in the business of e-paper and recently opened a new factory in Yangzhou, eastern China. Full production will begin in August and which will culminate into full scale mass production in September. This will allow the company to meet with the holiday demands of many of its clients.
It does not seem that Tablet Computers have really hurt e-ink’s business in the reading sphere and many think tank companies are saying that tablet and e-reader sales are neck and neck. Can tablets continue their growth? This is the question most companies are facing. The founder of ACER in a recent interview famously said that “The Tablet crazy is going to be very short term.” Most people find tablets are too expensive for the good ones, ranging in price from $400 to $800, while e-readers have come down in price to retail for $130 to $220.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
