Amazon's e-Reader, the Kindle, has been discussed, reviewed and scrutinised by publishers, bloggers and techies since its launch in November last year, all wondering what it would do for and to the publishing industry.

But the issue that has slipped by the wayside is “why we're even talking about it in the first place,” as reading is “not exactly a growth industry, as Simon & Schuster and Random House will tell you,” states Liz Gunnison, of Portfolio.com.

The Kindle may not be worth getting worked up over, Gunnison states in the Portfolio article, posted by Wired, reasoning that:

• According to a 2007 A.P.-Ipsos survey, one in four people in the United States did not read a book in the past year. For the three who did read a book, the average number of books they read was seven per year, “too few by a long shot to warrant buying a pricey (US$359) e-reader device.” In addition, the Kindle is likely to make a non-reader want to read, especially if they have to buy an expensive device to do so.

• About 12 million U.S. residents have both the monetary means and enjoyment of reading that could motivate them to buy a Kindle, yet there are other factors to consider before assuming they will all go out to buy one: “It can be difficult to unwind while interacting with a gadget, and many people enjoy the physical artifact of a book, relishing the feeling of accomplishment when pushing through something paper.” Therefore, the target buyer for a Kindle “would be a person who reads so much that they have ceased instilling books and periodicals with nostalgic value…yet not so much that they are rarely far enough from a computer to really need a separate device.” It's also likely that only one Kindle would be purchased per household, not per person, not to mention that some households buying e-reader devices could choose another brand, such as Sony's portable reader, Gunnison states.

Amazon has not released official sales figures, but so far TechCrunch has reported a source said 240,000 sold in the first eight months. As for how many more Amazon is likely to sell, it's hard to say.

Yet, the Kindle could benefit specific groups, such as university students who want to avoid the many heavy, expensive textbooks they have to buy. Also, profit margins for e-books are very high, another benefit for Amazon, as well as the fact that Kindle users are likely to download from Amazon, giving the company “a virtual lock on Kindle users' book purchases.”

As for newspapers and magazines, newspaper circulation declines aren't likely to be offset or even touched by people using the Kindle, while magazines available in the Kindle store are some of the lowest sellers, Gunnison writes, noting that the Kindle is not a “game-changer.”

Yet, is it “necessary that Kindle be 'game-changing' to be successful, and does the Kindle being successful mean that the 'game' will 'change'?” one reader pointed out in a rebuttal to Gunnison's article. “When the Kindle, and e-book readers in general, get cheap enough to see massive market penetration, then we might see the 'game' start to 'change.' But to extend the metaphor perhaps past its breaking point, e-books are only going to be a new expansion for the game—not an entirely new set of rules.”