Amazon is about to make a third major announcement that will delight its fans and shock its competitors.

Over the past few months Amazon has extended its reach by opening new online sales outlets. First came India, then Brazil and Mexico and mid November, Australia. Further European expansion is rumoured. These outlets will not only mean that local writers can get direct access to their readers and get paid in local currency but greater numbers of local writers will join the Amazon juggernaut.

The performance of Amazon’s flagship tablet, the Kindle Fire, has restricted and no doubt frustrated Amazon’s expansion of its digital publishing strategy. The early November release of new 3rd generation products, the Kindle HD and two models of the super high resolution Kindle HDX, has now happened. All three tablets have powerful multimedia capabilities.

With these announcements the giant USA online retailer is telegraphing its intention to launch a new multimedia format for eBooks. The resolutions of the HDX tablet of 339 ppi vs the Apple iPad’s 264 ppi might give clues to its direction. The HD matches the super bright 1280 x 800 active screen with a powerful dual-core 1.5MHz processor and the HDX model with a Snapdragon 800 quad-core 2.2Mhz processor will allow the new models to run movies, audio and video with groundbreaking speed.

It is known that Amazon is presently beta testing the multimedia program under the name of Enhanced Edition. The new format allows audio and video clips to be embedded in the download. Unlike its competitors the Amazon format is proprietary giving them the means to keep competitors out. Clearly Amazon sees this as the future of their digital media strategy.

Kindle authors will be encouraged to upgrade their eBooks to the new format. It is expected the tiles will be offered at a premium price range. Amazon has already released Aps to allow the Enhanced Edition titles to be run on iPad, iPhone and iPod devices.

The popular Australian Travel author, Brian Lawrenson, who has 33 Kindle titles, said: “I’m really excited about the prospect of the new format. It will be a game changer. It is the ideal format for travel books where the travelogue can be illustrated with audio and video material. I’m working on my first enhanced edition eBook now, Cruising the South Pacific, which will be ready for a mid December release.”

In the meanwhile, Amazon continues to lead the market with new innovative programs like Matching Books, Kindle Countdown and KDP Select. These programs are propelling the authors that use them to higher levels of sales.

Brian continued, “I’m delighted with the programs. The announcement of the new tablets happens to coincide with an Amazon KDP Select promotion of five of my titles. These will be available free on all Amazon sites, including the just released Australia store, on 18-21st November.”

These titles include: Vienna City of Music;

Leopard on my tail;

Trek to Annapurna Base Camp;

Isfahan is Half the World (Iran travels) and

Journey Above the Arctic Circle (Bestseller).

An easy to use download Ap allows Kindle books to be downloaded to PC, Mac, Kindle, tablets, smartphones and iPads. Once you have established your free Amazon account, nothing could be much simpler.

Brian Lawrenson is a traveller and author and publisher of Following Marco Polo’s Silk Road and over 30 eBook essays for people that love to travel. He is also a event speaker, cruise destination speaker, genealogist, Rotarian, husband and Community Leader. When not travelling, Brian lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife, Jill. Together they have travelled to more than 70 countries. Author page on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Brian-Lawrenson/e/B002BOL6WE/

Brian Lawrenson is a traveller and author and publisher of Following Marco Polo’s Silk Road and over 30 eBook essays for people that love to travel. He is also a event speaker, cruise destination speaker, genealogist, Rotarian, husband and Community Leader. When not travelling, Brian lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife, Jill. Together they have travelled to more than 70 countries. Author page on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Brian-Lawrenson/e/B002BOL6WE/

Author Bio: Brian Lawrenson is a traveller and author and publisher of Following Marco Polo’s Silk Road and over 30 eBook essays for people that love to travel. He is also a event speaker, cruise destination speaker, genealogist, Rotarian, husband and Community Leader. When not travelling, Brian lives in Sydney, Australia with his wife, Jill. Together they have travelled to more than 70 countries. Author page on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Brian-Lawrenson/e/B002BOL6WE/

Category: Entertainment
Keywords: Amazon, Kindle Fire, KindleHDX, Kindle tablet, Travel books, Travelogues, Enhanced Edition