Although interest in and talk of e-readers has grown in the past year, sales of the devices "may prove more elusive, and more nuanced, than the supply-side enthusiasts (principally manufacturers of the various devices, e-commerce pundits, and other early-adopter types) care to admit," Jack McKeown, co-founder and former CEO of Perseus Books Group, wrote today in an article for paidContent.

Why?

Talk of e-readers, from press conferences to articles to blogs and more, have been dominated by these supply-side enthusiasts, he reasons, pointing out that e-readers are nowhere near the tipping point of adoption, when early majority demand sets in.

Reading on a screen and reading on paper are obviously very different, and while both can be valuable and have their advantages, the e-readers that do best are those that most closely mimic actual paper, SFN has discovered in past research.

Although screen reading makes it possible to access thousands of titles on demand, it "may inhibit note-taking and retention, factors that apparently lie behind the rejection of a Kindle pilot programme by Princeton students earlier this fall," McKeown notes, adding that those on the supply side may not fully understand book-buyer demographics, and that "vertical pricing and distribution structures" may not be fully in place yet to "support a much larger e-reader market."

Not to completely rain on the e-readers' parade, McKeown makes it clear that e-readers are important, and are the biggest thing since audio books. However, that doesn't automatically translate to rapid adoption.

Meanwhile, more e-readers, as well as talk of them, are entering the marketplace, with Barnes & Noble the latest to be rumoured to launch its own e-reader device, according to PC World.