Amazon expands Kindle to the PC

Kindle for PC lets users read books on their computer

Amazon has expanded its Kindle digital book service to the PC with a new application that will allow Windows PC users to purchase, download and read e-book titles from Amazon's Kindle Store service.

Kindle for PC will also support Amazon's Whispersync service, which allows users to automatically synchronise bookmarks or current pages across PCs, Kindle tablet devices or iPhone/iPod touch handsets.

"Kindle for PC is the perfect companion application for folks who own a Kindle or Kindle DX," said Amazon's Kindle vice president Ian Freed. "Kindle for PC is also a great way for people around the world to read the most popular books of today even if they don't yet have a Kindle."

The service will be offered as a free download and will support Windows 7, Vista and XP systems.

The news comes as Amazon finds itself with a fresh crop of competitors in the e-book reader market.

Hardware vendor Spring Design entered the market earlier this week with its Alex device, while publisher/retailer Barnes & Noble presented an even more serious challenge to Kindle with its Nook reader.

Both devices are based on the Android operating system from Google, which is further pressing Amazon with the announcement of its Editions online retail service.