Amazon scores Obama Q&A for Kindle Singles Interview series
A coup for Kindle's shop for mini e-books, the new interview series lands President Obama as its next subject. It's the latest move inching the e-commerce giant into the realm of news.
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In the news world, a one-on-one, exclusive, extensive interview with the president of the United States is about as big as it gets.
The latest outlet to score such a isn't a new organization at all -- or at least, not really.
Linked to President Barack Obama's visit to an Amazon fulfillment center in Tennessee Tuesday, the e-commerce giant will conduct an interview with the president for its new Kindle Singles Interview series, which publishes long-form interviews with iconic figures and world leaders in the mini e-book section of its Kindle store.
Amazon has long been transforming into a multifaceted tech giant, evolving from its e-commerce roots into a device maker with Kindle, an enterprise business with its Web services and a television studio with forthcoming original series, among others.
Scoring an Obama interview now inches Amazon further onto the news turf.
It's not the first move in that direction. Earlier this year, Amazon Chief Executive Jeff Bezos led a group that invested $5 million in news Web site Business Insider. The site's co-founder, Henry Blodget, said that the proceeds will be used to invest in editorial, technology, sales and marketing, subscriptions, and events. He also said the partnership stemmed from a conversation that Bezos and Blodget had over dinner last year.
Amazon launched the series last week with an interview with Shimon Peres, the 89-year-old Israeli president. The Obama interview will be free and available Wednesday. Peres' interview, titled "The Optimist," costs 99 cents.
Via Politico.