Is Hearst Busting Out A Wireless E-Reader Of Its Own?

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Fortune quoted "industry insiders" as saying Hearst had developed a wireless e-reading device with a large-format screen. The idea, the insiders said, is to make it the go-to device for reading periodicals. Fortune's sources said the technology would be available to other publishers to adapt and would likely arrive before the end of 2009, first in black and white and later in color as e-reading technology advances.

Hearst declined comment to the magazine -- and did not immediately return requests for comment from Channelweb.com -- but the head of Hearst's interactive media group, Kenneth Bronfin, told Fortune in a separate interview that Hearst was "keenly interested" in an e-reading play and that "these devices will be a big part of our future." (Bronfin, as various reports were quick to point out, also sits on the board of E-Ink, the company whose screen technology is used in the Kindle, the Sony Reader and other e-reading devices.)

Details on the Hearst reader are sparse and mostly hearsay, but Fortune's sources said the form-factor is bigger than the Kindle's six-inch diagonal screen, closer to a standard 8.5 x 11-inch piece of paper. It will download content wirelessly, they said, and have a possibly flexible core.

What's setting e-reading technology observers aflutter, however, is Hearst's alleged plan to sell the e-readers to other publishers and leave it to them to develop their own branding and payment while getting a return on the periodicals that are sold through the devices.

"That's something you will never see Amazon do," a source told Fortune. "They aren't going to give up control of the devices."

Several well-known Hearst titles, especially newspapers like the Chronicle and Seattle Post-Intelligencer, have reached dire financial straits.

Amazon's second-generation Kindle, the leader in e-books at least from a popularity perspective, started shipping this week and sells for $359. No word yet on how much a Hearst reader would cost, but if the Hearst device does come to fruition, it'll join a host of other competitors competing for e-reading market share.