The timing makes sense: A September or even early October introduction would be well-timed to position Amazon going into the holiday shopping season, and to build anticipation for a tablet that could be the most asked-for stocking stuffer of 2011. It also coincides with when arch-rival Apple plans to launch its iOS 5.0 mobile operating system, and, potentially, a new, higher-resolution iPad to complement its current blockbuster, the iPad 2.

Amazon and Apple aren't the only ones planning fall tablet launches. Sony's first Android tablets are due in the fall as well.

As expected, Amazon isn't saying anything-the company never confirms or denies the ever-churning rumor mill. However, the company's CEO, Jeff Bezos, has indicated in the past that a tablet is its next frontier. And that makes , on numerous levels.

For one, Amazon and Apple are two behemoths each vying for consumers' digital media purchase dollars. Books, music, video: Both companies are all about content consumption, and both are well-positioned in the fight for your wallet.

Amazon established itself as a contender in the hardware space when it launched, and cultivated over the past four years, its . While Apple grew its ownership of the digital music market, Amazon forged a place amongst e-book consumers, and the Kindle was critical to that strategy.