Hindustan Times now available on e-reader Kindle

The Hindustan Times, one of India's leading English dailies, has announced that it had become the first Indian newspaper to be available globally on Kindle, the market leader in e-readers from Amazon.com.

Kindle is an electronic reading device on which one can download books, periodicals or study materials wirelessly in a very short time. The material downloaded can be read in a paper-like display. Many of the leading global newspapers and magazines are available on Kindle.

The palm-sized device is particularly popular among frequent travellers who are saved the trouble of carrying bulky and heavy volumes; and students who no longer have to buy expensive textbooks that they require for a relatively short time. Kindle has already sold more than a million units on direct orders to Amazon.

Hindustan Times editor-in-chief Sanjoy Narayan, said, ''Putting Hindustan Times on Kindle will now enable readers across the world to get access to the paper wherever and whenever they want to, in a convenient easy-to-carry format.'' It will look like the print format and be loaded on the device at 6 am IST daily, the release added.

e-Hindustan not for Indians
With a ''nominal'' subscription charge of Rs460 per month, HT's move is clearly aimed at foreign readers rather than Indian ones. Locally, one can buy a whole year's subscription to the print version of HT at that price under various special offers that the paper keeps churning out. Moreover, a not insignificant proportion of the cost can be recovered through the 'raddiwala' as old newspapers fetch a decent price here.

In any case, Kindle and its rival e-readers from companies like Sony are a long way from catching on in India, mainly because of the price tag. It is priced at $259 internationally; but after taxes and shipping charges, it could cost as much as $350 (Rs16,000) in India.