Target to drop Kindle product line

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MINNEAPOLIS, May 2 (UPI) -- U.S. retail giant Target Corp. is phasing out sales of the Kindle tablet products, a company spokeswoman said without elaborating.

The Kindle line of digital tablets has sold well for Target, The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday. Still, spokeswoman Molly Snyder said the store "is phasing out Amazon- and Kindle-branded products in the spring of 2012."

Speculation for why Target would stop selling Kindle devices includes an expansion of Apple Inc. products and a move to stop consumers from using Target as a showroom for Internet retailers.

Concern is growing among brick-and-mortar stores that customers come in to view products, then use a smartphone to find a favorable price on the Internet. They then leave the brick-and-mortar "showroom" without making a purchase there.

To counter "showrooming," retailers are seeking out specially branded products or exclusive deals with manufacturers.

Neither Apple nor Amazon would comment on Target's decision, the Journal said.