Amazon.fr launched the first ever French language version of the Kindle October 7th. Amazon’s (NASDAQ: AMZN) customers in France will have access to 35,000 e-books in French. This includes bestsellers, graphic novels, and classics.
In addition to the titles offered in French, customers will have access to the 800,000+ Amazon Kindle e-book collection in English and other languages.
Amazon.fr is taking pre-orders for the French language Kindle today at www.amazon.fr/kindle.
According to Amazon’s latest press release, there is a huge variety of books by bestselling French authors, as well as popular French magazines and newspapers.
“The French Kindle Store’s vast selection of content includes popular titles from best-selling authors such as Katherine Pancol, Delphine de Vigan, Harlan Coben, Stéphane Hessel, Haruki Murakami, Françoise Bourdin and Michel Houellebecq in a wide range of categories. Customers will also find the largest selection of popular graphic novels available for download including titles from The Largo Winch Series of Francq and Van Hamme, Julia and Roem from Bilal and Walking Dead. Customers can also find top French newspapers and magazines such as Le Monde, Les Echos, Le Figaro, Libération andAujourd’hui en France/Le Parisien available for single purchase or subscription. Independent authors and publishers can also now use Kindle Direct Publishing to make their books available in Amazon.fr’s Kindle Store.”
-Amazon French Kindle Store Press Release
Like it’s internationally bestselling English language counterpart, The French language version of the Kindle is lightweight, and super inexpensive at only 99€. It has apps available on a variety of PC, tablet and smartphone platforms. It also has built in Wi-Fi and lasts for up to one month on a single charge. Not to mention the crisp, clear e-ink display and font size adjustments.
So, it looks like the Kindle is taking off in Europe with a presence in the UK, Spain, Germany, and now France. What an exciting time for e-readers on the international front, and a giant step towards global literacy.
Just a correction: Amazon.es launched in Spain last month, but the Kindle store hasn’t opened yet (though it’s expected to do so in the coming months)
How can you say, “…and super inexpensive at only 99€”? In the States it cost $79 which is 57 Euro today! 99 Euro is $136. Your impression that French buyers are getting a deal is false and in general Amazon pricing structure is unfair for European buyers!