Barnes and Noble, the world’s largest seller of books, said that it had sold out its Nook e-book reader even before the actual release. The announcement correlates with similar claims made by other makers of e-book readers, such as Amazon or Sony, which signifies the importance of electronic books going forward.

“While we increased production based on the high consumer interest, we have sold out of our initial nook allotment available for delivery before the holidays. We are committed to providing timely updates to our customers on expected nook availability and will do so through in-store, online and our direct-to-customer communications throughout the holiday season,” a statement by the company reads.

Barnes and Noble claimed that devices ordered from Friday will be shipped beginning the week of January 4, 2010. Gift givers will be issued a holiday certificate that notes a January shipping date, reports Reuters news-agency.

Sony, another major supplier of e-book readers, said that it had also run out of its latest Daily Edition devices.

In spite of huge promotion of electronic books nowadays, 2009 is likely to be remembered as a watershed year in the evolution of e-books and e-readers with several milestones and product launches standing out as catalysts for change in the market, according to Gartner market research company.

However, Gartner said that while the number of electronic readers sold is likely to increase in 2009, it expects 2010 to be the year when e-book readers really become popular consumer electronic devices, culminating in e-reader "mania" for the 2010 holiday season.

Tags: E-Book