Delivery companies have sent out over a million Kindles worldwide every week in December from online retail giant Amazon, according to data released from the company.

It declined to give any precise sales figures, however. The e-reader, a rival to Apple's iPad, was the bestselling device on Amazon between Thanksgiving and Christmas in the US.

The Kindle Fire is also the best-selling device on Amazon's British, French, Spanish and Italian websites, indicating a global sales boost for the company.

Jeff Bezos, chief executive officer of Amazon, said: "We are grateful to our customers worldwide for making this the best holiday ever for Kindle."

Christmas Day was the biggest ever day for e-book downloads on Amazon as people updated their new devices with the latest bestsellers.

In less positive news for the online retailer, analysts at Goldman Sachs predicted its 38 per cent growth rate would drop short of Wall Street's expectation of 40 per cent growth, precipitating a fall in share prices.
 

Author:  Gillian Walters