SONY HAS cut prices of its e-readers in the US for a second time since the introduction of Apple’s iPad in April intensified competition in the market for devices that can display digital books.

The Japanese consumer-electronics maker lowered its Reader Daily Edition e-reader to $299 from $349 earlier this month and made smaller reductions on two other models, after trimming prices in May, Sony spokesman Sean Yoneda said.

Sony is competing with Amazon.com, the Seattle-based maker of the Kindle e-reader, and Barnes and Noble, the second-largest US bookstore chain, both of which have cut prices for their devices.

The e-book makers are fending off competition from the iPad, a tablet computer with a colour screen on which users can read digital books, watch videos and surf the internet.

E-reader sales will probably double this year to six million units, according to Forrester Research. Kindle has about 60 per cent of the US market, followed by Sony with 35 per cent.

Amazon, the world’s largest online retailer, on July 1st introduced an updated version of its larger Kindle with sharper contrast and a lower price than the previous model.

The Kindle DX will sell for $379, down from $489, Amazon.com said.

Sony in May said it planned to start selling its e-readers in China, Japan and Australia this year, widening its challenge to Kindle.

China is projected to be the biggest market for electronic-book readers by 2015, Sony said at the time. – (Bloomberg)