Kobo has just partnered with Pick n Pay, one of the largest retailers in South Africa. The Kobo Touch will be available starting today for R995 and customers will have access to the Kobo online bookstore.
“We’re excited to enter a new continent, and are happy to do so in partnership with top retailer Pick n Pay,” said Michael Serbinis, CEO, Kobo. “Together, we will transform the digital publishing market by making more books available to more people throughout South Africa.”
“There is no getting away from the fact that the world is fast becoming increasingly more digitally focused, and by offering quality digital products at competitive prices we can ensure that these platforms become more accessible to a greater base of South African consumers,” said Bronwen Rohland, Marketing Director, Pick n Pay.
Pick ‘n Pay says it is expecting strong sales of the device leading into the holiday season. The supermarket chain will be earning a cut of the revenue from content purchased on e-readers bought from its outlets. Kobo is one of the first big companies to have a presence in Africa. Many other retailers, such as Barnes and Noble and Amazon, have not really bothered.
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.
