Amazon Optimizes Kindle Store for iPhone

If you thought Amazon wasn't too serious about bringing Kindle titles to other platforms...it just optimized the online Kindle Store for the iPhone.

Online retailer Amazon.com continues to push its Kindle ebook platform: hot on the heels of announcing the Kindle DX, the company has announced that it has optimized its online Kindle Store so that it works seamlessly with its free Kindle for iPhone application. Now iPhone users can follow “Get Books” links from within the Kindle store and get easy access to more than 250,000 book titles, all specially formatted for the iPhone and iPod touch display.

“The response to Kindle for iPhone has been tremendous,” said Amazon Kindle VP Ian Freed, in a statement. “The most common feedback we heard from customers was that they wanted a better experience for purchasing new Kindle books from their iPhones. We’ve been working hard to respond to that feedback with a new web site optimized for Safari on iPhone and we’re excited to do that today.”

The Kindle for iPhone application, introduced in March, lets readers tap into Kindle books using their iPhone, rather than having to carry a Kindle reader with them everywhere. Users can access previously-purchased titles using Amazon’s servers, add bookmarks and view notes, sync their bookmarks with their Kindle readers, and now shop for Kindle titles online in a store optimized for the iPhone’s built-in Safari Web browser.

The success of Amazon’s Kindle has ignited the ebook market, with Barnes & Noble recently buying Fictionwise and offering digital magazine subscriptions. Amazon, in turn, recently acquired Lexcycle, makers of the Stanza ebook reader application for the iPhone.