Reports: Amazon Plans Kindle In UK

Amazon is planning to launch its Kindle e-book reader and a network to support it, in the UK before Christmas, according to reports.

The Kindle electronic book readers are already popular in the US, and Amazon wants them in UK shops before the festive season, according to Mobile Today – but the online bookseller wants to make sure the UK’s Kindle has a cellular data connection for downloading newspapers, and that’s taking some re-engineering.

According to Mobile Today, Amazon is looking for a deal with a mobile operator, which will include the ability to support Amazon’s Whispernet data transfer technology. It plans to have the device made by Qualcomm for the UK market, says the source.

Qualcomm is involved in Amazon’s US version of Kindle, and also has the Gobi chipset, a single piece of silicon that can handle the UK’s GSM and 3G networks as well as the US Sprint CDMA network on which the Kindle has been available so far. Gobi would let Amazon build one Kindle for all countries