Amazon.de Launches German Kindle Store with the Largest Selection of Any E-Bookstore in Germany

LUXEMBOURG--(BUSINESS WIRE)--(NASDAQ:AMZN)—Amazon.de today launched the Kindle Store (www.amazon.de/kindlebuecher), the biggest e-bookstore in Germany, with the largest selection of ebooks including more than 650,000 titles, 71 of 100 Spiegel bestsellers, and over 25,000 German-language titles with thousands of German classics downloadable for free only on Kindle. Amazon also announced that its series of free “Buy Once, Read Everywhere” apps for the most popular devices, including iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, PC, Mac and Android-based devices, are now available in German-language versions. In addition, in response to customer demand, Amazon is now offering the latest-generation Kindle and Kindle 3G with an English user interface directly from Amazon.de.

“German customers are passionate about books and reading, and just as we’ve seen in the U.S. and the U.K., we believe they will quickly embrace the advantages of reading on Kindle.”

“After 12 years of selling print books on Amazon.de, we are excited today to offer the millions of Amazon.de customers access to the biggest e-bookstore in Germany,” said Greg Greeley, vice president, European Retail. “German customers are passionate about books and reading, and just as we’ve seen in the U.S. and the U.K., we believe they will quickly embrace the advantages of reading on Kindle.”

The German Kindle Store’s vast selection includes titles from German-language authors including Arno Geiger, Kerstin Gier and Charlotte Link, plus 71 of 100 Spiegel bestsellers and thousands of German classics downloadable for free only on Kindle. Additionally, the Kindle Store features thousands of independently-published German-language titles through Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing service. Top German and international newspapers and magazines are also available for single purchase or subscription including Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Handelsblatt and Die Zeit. New subscriptions are auto-delivered wirelessly to Kindle and start with a free 14-day trial.

Free Kindle reading apps are now available in German language for iPad, iPod touch, iPhone, PC, Mac and Android-based devices. Amazon’s Whispersync technology syncs your place across all devices, so you can pick up reading where you left off. Plus, with Kindle Worry-Free Archive, books you purchase from the Kindle Store, and any notes or annotations you create, are automatically backed up online in your Kindle library on Amazon.de where they can be re-downloaded wirelessly for free, anytime.

Kindle is the bestselling product in Amazon’s history and offers the latest electronic-ink technology with 50 percent better contrast, a sleek design with a 6-inch screen, light weight of just 8.5 ounces, readable in bright sunlight with no glare, and up to one-month battery life. Kindle has an English keyboard and English-language menus that allow customers to find, discover and read a large selection of German and English books. Kindle is available for just 139€ and Kindle 3G is only 189€. Both Kindle devices are now available with free two-day shipping from Amazon.de.

“Customers have been asking us to make our latest-generation Kindle available from Germany and we are pleased to do that today,” Greeley continued. “Plus, any German customer with a smartphone, tablet or PC and a free Kindle reading app can buy and read ebooks from the Kindle Store today.”

Customers can start shopping our new German ebookstore at www.amazon.de/kindlebuecher, and can learn more about our Kindle and Kindle 3G devices at www.amazon.de/kindleWi-Fi and www.amazon.de/kindle3G.

About Amazon.com

Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth’s Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books; Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home & Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health & Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Kindle, Kindle 3G and Kindle DX are the revolutionary portable readers that wirelessly download books, magazines, newspapers, blogs and personal documents to a crisp, high-resolution electronic ink display that looks and reads like real paper. Kindle 3G and Kindle DX utilize the same 3G wireless technology as advanced cell phones, so users never need to hunt for a Wi-Fi hotspot. Kindle is the #1 bestselling product across the millions of items sold on Amazon.

Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, www.amazon.cn, and www.amazon.it. As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.

About Amazon.de

Amazon.de opened its virtual doors in October 1998. Amazon strives to be the world’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.de and sellers list millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books, Music, MP3, Movies, Games, Kitchen, Home & Garden, Electronics, Watches & Jewelry, Shoes & Apparel, Toys and Baby Products, Sports and Leisure, Personal Care & Beauty, DIY & Automotive, Pet Supplies, Computers and Software as well as Magazine Subscriptions.

Amazon Web Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any type of business. Kindle, Kindle 3G and Kindle DX are the revolutionary portable readers that wirelessly download books, magazines, newspapers, blogs and personal documents to a crisp, high-resolution electronic ink display that looks and reads like real paper. Kindle 3G and Kindle DX utilize the same 3G wireless technology as advanced cell phones, so users never need to hunt for a Wi-Fi hotspot. Kindle is the #1 bestselling product across the millions of items sold on Amazon.

Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, www.amazon.cn and www.amazon.it.

Amazon.de is a trading name for Amazon EU S.à.r.l., Amazon Services Europe S.à.r.l. and Amazon Media EU S.à r.l. All three are wholly owned subsidiaries of global online retailer Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) located in Seattle, Washington.

As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates otherwise.

Forward-Looking Statements

This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to competition, management of growth, new products, services and technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption, inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.