{mosimage}April 13, 2009

Amazon.com’s popular electronic book reader — The Kindle — could face competition from AT&T. Perhaps.

In a statement e-mailed to the DBJ, Dallas-based AT&T confirms that it is “interested” in that market, without giving details. “Naturally, we are very interested in the (e-reader) space, but we do not have a product agreement to announce,” according to the statement from spokeswoman Sarah Andreani. “Our emerging device organization has been meeting with a number of (equipment manufacturers) about a whole range of wirelessly embedded consumer products.”

Kindle, whose wireless service is provided by Sprint, would be one of a relatively small but growing number of consumer electronics that AT&T is starting to peddle. On April 1, the company announced that it will sell netbook computers in two markets, Atlanta — where the devices will cost about $50 — and Philadelphia, where they’ll run closer to $100. Netbooks typically run Linux or Windows XP operating systems and allow users to wirelessly surf the Internet and link up with Internet-based software programs, which typically run on other computers.

The Kindle sells for $359 and allows books, magazines and newspapers to be downloaded wirelessly. Content can be purchased from the Amazon.com Kindle store. “The wireless industry is growing, expanding and changing. It’s not just about phones,” says Jeff Kagan, a telecom analyst in the Atlanta area. “There’s an opportunity there.”

But Barbara Lancaster, president of the Richardson telecom consultancy LTC International, says there are both opportunities and challenges for AT&T in doing a Kindle-like device. “You can get more content out to people. Demand is continuing to rise even as the economy is tight,” she says.

But AT&T would need to examine what mechanics would need to be in place to get and distribute content that is interesting to its customers, she says. “It’s not trivial. Given that we have content creators popping up every month, how do you stay on top of that?”