Saving Newspapers With E-Readers

The Boston Globe may have dodged the bullet for now, but newspapers clearly need to come up with a new game plan, fast. There's a surprising savior waiting in the wings: the e-reader. Just as the Kindle gave the publishing biz a boost, big-screen portable reading devices could do what's so far eluded the print industry: get people to pay for their digital news.

The New York Times is expected to be involved in the rollout of an Amazon reader, due out next year. The Financial Times chief John Ridding says his paper's interested as well. “The severe double whammy of the recession and the structural shift to the Internet has created an urgency that has rightly focused attention on these devices," he said.

But the capabilities are still not there yet - the E Ink display technology is lacking, and the video's can't display color and video, sticking points for magazines. Apple's tablet computer, due out later this year, might steal some thunder. And it's yet to be seen whether these e-readers will do anything to save an industry in turmoil.

(Photo courtesy of Plastic Logic)