任天堂3DS能不能变身当红电子书？

    任天堂（Nintendo）的3DS掌上游戏机能否成为一款流行的电子书阅读器？日本最大的印刷公司大日本印刷株式会社（Dai Nippon Printing）认为很有这个可能。大日本印刷是日本出版业巨头，它日前宣布，将在今年秋天为年轻读者推出300本可在任天堂热卖的3DS掌上游戏机上阅读的电子书。

    大日本印刷目前已经在通过传统电子书阅读器销售电子书和漫画，但这个市场已经相当拥挤。漫画在包括手机在内的所有平台上都颇受欢迎，但普通的电子书就没那么畅销了。身为出版商的大日本印刷表示，特别渴望争取到年轻读者。这家公司声称，年轻读者往往无法通过其它平台看到电子书。通过将这一人群缩小到痴迷游戏的年轻人，大日本印刷希望电子书的销量最终能够出现大的起色。“我们估计便携式游戏设备，特别是任天堂3DS，在日本12岁以下的儿童中很流行，”DNP公司发言人说。“但是，很多孩子都没有电子书阅读器以及iPad等，我们开展此项业务正是瞄准了这个群体。

    虽然日本消费者以喜欢新技术而著称，但电子书在这个国家却未能流行起来。传统电子书的销量堪称惨淡。虽然电子书在许多发达国家相当畅销，例如每四个美国人中就有一人拥有电子书，但唯独日本例外。任天堂3DS目前在日本已售出1,100万部，它或许能够有效地扩大电子书的用户群。目前日本市场的传统电子书存量仅为100万部，大日本印刷预计，日本电子书市场有望扩大10倍。

    来自东京的技术顾问Serkan Toto说：“电子书不但能帮助任天堂丰富产品线从而获取更多收益，更重要的是，它会为3DS带来新的市场机遇。任天堂可以更容易地向家长推销3DS，而正是这些人做出决定，购买游戏机给孩子。”

    Serkan Toto认可3DS电子书的销量极具潜力，因为日本是世界上阅读氛围最浓厚的国家。来自日本调研公司Impress Business Media Corp的分析师表示，日本儿童图书市场目前市值高达7.9亿美元。预计到2017年，日本电子书市场有望增长两倍，达到23亿美元。

    不过，不少分析师对此持怀疑态度。一些人指出，书籍、杂志和报纸的读者数正呈下降趋势。东京的市场调研公司MM Research Institute发布报告称，由于电子书价格高企、种类不足以及来自智能手机和平板电脑的竞争，整个电子书设备市场去年表现疲软，销量未达预期。这家公司预计，今年电子书销量仍然不会出现起色。

    大日本印刷将推出面向儿童的电子书服务，具体做法是在3DS上提供一款免费的电子书应用供用户下载，尽管任天堂女发言人否认该公司正同大日本印刷就此项服务展开合作。大日本印刷进行数字化的书籍将十分适于在这位发言人所说的3DS高清触摸屏上阅读。任天堂的这位发言人说：“我们已通过自有平台发布了脑力训练、英语学习和电子书等软件。此外，夏普（Sharp Corp）目前正在日本学校中利用3DS开展项目。”

    Can Nintendo's 3DS handheld become a powerhouse e-reader? Japan's biggest printer, Dai Nippon Printing, thinks so. The company, which is a big player in domestic publishing here, announced it will launch 300 titles for young readers this fall for Nintendo's popular portable console.

    Dai Nippon is already selling e-books and manga through conventional e-readers, a crowded market. Manga on all platforms including mobile phones are popular but regular e-books do less well. The publisher says it is particularly keen to go after young readers who, it claims, often don't have access to e-books on any platform. By narrowing their demographic to a gaming-obsessed youth, the firm hopes e-book sales might finally take off. "We estimated that portable game devices, especially the 3DS, is popular among under twelves in Japan," a DNP spokesman says. "But, there aren't many children that have e-book readers, iPads, and so on, so we started this new business to target them."

    Despite a reputation for being early adopters, Japanese consumers haven't fallen for e-readers. Sales of conventional e-books and e-readers have been comparatively poor. E-Reader adoption, well established in other developed nations -- around 25% of U.S. consumers have one -- is low in Japan. With 11 million 3DS units sold so far in Japan, Nintendo's (NTDOY) gadget could be ideal for creating an e-book audience. As there are only about 1 million dedicated e-readers in circulation in Japan, DNP reckons it stands to multiply possible e-book outlets by a factor of ten.

    "For Nintendo, e-books are a new business that will not only allow them to diversify their product portfolio and create a new revenue stream but also provide a new marketing angle: It will be now easier to sell the 3DS to parents -- who mainly make the purchasing decision for their kids," Tokyo-based technology consultant Serkan Toto says.

    He agrees potential sales could be massive in one of the most bookish nations in the world. The children's books market in Japan is worth about $790 million annually. Meanwhile, the market for e-books in Japan is expected to triple by 2017 to $2.3 billion, according to analysts at Japan's Impress Business Media Corp.

    Some are not so bullish. Critics point to falling readership of books, magazines, and newspapers. Tokyo-based market research firm MM Research Institute reports that e-reader demand was weaker in Japan last year than expected owing to the high price of e-books in Japan, their relative scarcity, and competition with smartphones and tablets. E-reader sales are expected to slow substantially this year.

    DNP's e-book service for children will be implemented through a freely downloadable e-books app for the 3DS, although a Nintendo spokeswoman denied the console maker is collaborating with DNP on this aspect of the service. Books digitized by DNP will be easily readable on the 3DS's high-resolution touchscreens she said. "We already distribute brain training and english learning and e-books through our consoles, while Sharp Corp has a program that uses the 3DS at schools in Japan," she said.