Harry Potter eBooks Headed for Kindle's Lending Library; Next Wizarding World Theme Park to Open in Japan
Posted 05.10.12 by Mandy
All seven of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter titles have been available for purchase as an e-book for a little more than a month, and they will soon be available to borrow in an e-format as well.
Starting June 19, Amazon exclusively will be adding Sorcerer's Stone, Deathly Hallows, and all of the books in between to their Kindle Owners' Lending Library. Unlike a public library, there is no limit on the number of copies of an eBook that would be available to Amazon Prime subscribers, so there's never a waiting list for any particular title. Of course, also unlike a public library, there is a monthly subscription fee to have access to the library, as well as the purchase price of the Kindle itself. One thing is for sure, though: if you're wanting to take something along to read on a summer vacation, it's much easier to throw an e-reader in a bag than it is to schlep a 650-page copy of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince along on your travels.
And where better to go on vacation than a Harry Potter theme park? It turns out that there's another one on the way.
The first international version of The Wizarding World of Harry Potter theme park was announced today, and it's headed for Universal Studios Japan. According to the L.A. Times, the park is expected to cost around $500 million and should open in 2014. That projected opening date is actually earlier than the anticipated opening of the West Coast version of the park that was announced late last year. The Universal Studios in Los Angeles is expected to open its Harry Potter area in 2016 at the earliest.
The decision to put the second-ever Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Osaka is largely due to the boy wizard's enormous popularity in Japan. The movies have grossed over $900 million there, more than in Harry's home country of Britain. In addition, over 24 million Harry Potter books have sold there, and items such as magic wand chopsticks have made the brand one of the most successful merchandise lines of the last decade.
Japan may not be the only international destination to house a Harry Potter park. Universal theme parks are in the works in Russia, Dubai, and South Korea. A Wizarding World section of the park could be a possibility at any of them.