Amazon’s new line of Kindles shifts the balance of power across several media industries. But Amazon isn’t approaching every kind of media in the same way. Even as Amazon is locking books down, its approaches to video and magazines could help to open those markets up.

All three old-school Kindles are disruptive on price. At between $79 and $149, the new E Ink Kindles bring dedicated e-readers to their iPod Shuffle moment. There’s really no longer a reason for anyone with a little bit of disposable income who reads e-books not to have one, unless they already own a device they’re happy with. At ...