Jeff Bezos is a strategist comparable to Steve Jobs. Throughout this 17 years business, Bezos and Steve Jobs both have strikingly similar foresight and adventurous spirit: They two like very much “unrestrained gambling” in non-relevant areas, trying to change the world. If Jobs changed the PC , animation, music and mobile phone industry and created a "post-PC" era , then Jeff Bezos is changing the retail and publishing industry and defines e-commerce and opens a "cloud era." When Jobs is praised by all of world again and again for the magnificent iPhone 4, iPad/iPad 2, iMac etc., Bezos seems to have been forgotten in the corner, secretly projecting a plan that will change the table market.
Amazon is going to release its own tablet called Kindle Fire and attracts widespread concern, not just because Amazon, who’s not a true manufacturer, starts to march towards the tablet computer market, and most importantly, this 199$ Kindle Fire increased competition. There are really too many so called “iPad killer” failed gloomily we see in the past two years. I forecast that the 199$ Kindle Fire will going to be one of the best sellers!
Firstly, let’s see why other tablets are not so popular as iPad.
To catch up (or even exceed) the hardware level of iPad is not that much difficult. However, which now is better than iPad who integrates softwares and hardwares, and not to mention the user experience, public praise, cost control, brand recognition, marketing ability, to name but a few. Those “Androids” like Moto Xoom, HTC Flyer, Samsung Galaxy Tab fall into the fight of parameters, advertising, however they all cost almost 500 bucks. Why not these who afford that much money go and purchase iPad instead? Apple’s market share rose to 68.3% from the 65.7% ( 80% + U.S. ), while Android tablets fell to 26.8% as a whole, according to the latest date from IDC.
This simply proves that: To follow Apple blindly only leads to failure. And the only way out is to do that iPad cannot do. The more a tablet is unlike iPad, the more chances you get. There are only two kinds of potential users: those who cannot afford iPad, and who has no demand of iPad. Kindle Fire strategy must be: low-cost and difference. In fact , Kindle Fire never want to be an "iPad killer "! Amazon tries to avaid the word “Android” in all of its promotional materials and even the word “”tablet” does not appear! 199 $ Kindle Fire is a smaller, lighter and cheaper "reading " device : only 7 inches, no 3G, no GPS, no camera , no Mic, but there is USB …. You get it?
I am not iPad, I'm not Android, I am eveb not Tablet! I am Kindle! I do what iPad cannot!
(For, more reasons, you may like to read it here: www.urexsoft.com/news/why-kindle-fire-is-going-to-be-the-bes….)
You might want to change in this line Joe to Jobs
As for the totality, you raise the point that many forget. Jobs found or created niches. Rather than slavishly trying to copy others he made the market. (oh and sometimes he failed)
Bezos is doing the same, whether he always succeeds will be proven later.
Likewise Google was founded by taking an idea (The search market) and creating newer features. Again a niche that they grew.
Now many might say that Jobs just took ideas from others - eg Xerox and the Mac, which may well be true. BUT the difference is when ideas are taken at infancy rather than at a more mature stage, and its also to do with integration.
The issue now is that both Google and Apple saw a new market in tablets. (when and how is always going to be a point of contention). Apple did get to market first. So now the battlefield is set.
One strategy which Amazon (Bezos) is playing is not to attack head on. Its to build strength in regions that the big players are not playing in. Like guerrilla's dont do battle where the enemies are strongest. (and when elephants dance ants get squashed)
Not all guerrillas win.
The alternative strategy is to create alliances, to attack head on. This is analogy is probably that which Google is doing with Android, with some of the peripheral players who have now fallen by the wayside, eg HP/Palm and probably RIM.
Taking things head on is a little like the strategy of trench warfare in WWI. There is going to be a lot of collateral damage. Not just the generals but the troops (troops = consumers who pick the wrong player. But some scavengers waiting for the fallout will do well eg HP Tablet $99) and some other side players like Adobe with Flash (they are giving its development away)
And again Amazon probably don't want an Alliance with Google as they are fighting them in the online shopping business. And Google alliances arent all that secure, as Apple/Jobs found out after having Google in their boardroom discussions.
And it is a Google/Apple battle thats going on in the Tablet market. Samsung HTC etc are just allies for Google. Google has already committed to providing them with legal aid in the battle, and buying up patents to use in this battle.
The discussion this generates might be interesting. Probably get many of those in the trenches already making statements about the merits of products and morality of the players rather than observations on strategy. That said we might get some good insights.