US online retail powerhouse Amazon on Monday introduced a cut-price version of its Kindle electronic reader that features on-screen ads.
Kindle with Special Offers e-readers priced at $114 each will begin shipping in the United States on May 3, according to Amazon.
Amazon charges $139 for the same Kindle without ads or deals displayed as screen savers and on the home page. The e-readers connect to the Internet to download digital books using wireless connections to routers at "hotspots."
A version of the e-reader that accesses the Internet using a built-in 3G telecom connection is priced at $189.
"We're working hard to make sure that anyone who wants a Kindle can afford one," Amazon founder and chief executive Jeff Bezos said in a release.
"Kindle with Special Offers is the same #1 bestselling Kindle — and it's only $114."
Sponsors of Kindle screensaver ads include US car maker Buick, credit card company Visa, and Proctor & Gamble beauty products line Olay, according to Amazon.
Launch deals included discounts on audible books, digital music, a Roku Streaming Player, and Amazon.com gift cards.
earlier related report
China's ZTE sues Swedish rival Ericsson
Beijing (AFP) April 12, 2011 –
Chinese telecom equipment supplier ZTE said Tuesday it was suing a unit of Swedish mobile network giant Ericsson for patent infringement, escalating a legal dispute between the two rivals.
ZTE launched legal action on Monday against Ericsson (China) Communications Co. Ltd for allegedly breaching its Chinese patents on a range of products involving "core networks, GSM infrastructure and 4G infrastructure".
"ZTE has asked that Ericsson discontinue any act of infringement and bear legal liability in accordance with the provision of relevant laws," ZTE said in a statement.
"ZTE is fully committed to developing its own patent technology and respects reasonable patent requests from other vendors."
Ericsson has filed three lawsuits in Europe against ZTE for infringing the Swedish company's patents on mobile phones and infrastructure, an Ericsson spokesman said earlier this month.
ZTE and Chinese rival Huawei have in recent years been pushing into overseas markets, eating into the market share of leading Western companies.
Ericsson, headquartered in Stockholm, has some 17,848 employees in Sweden and 90,000 worldwide.
It is the market leader in mobile network equipment ahead of Finnish-German giant Nokia Siemens, French-based telecom equipment maker Alcatel-Lucent and China's Huawei.
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