) may only participate in the 5% of the market,” Global Equities Research wrote. “Over the next 5 years, we are estimating that Digital Text Books may contribute $4.9 Billion to iTunes revenues and $5.14 to Apples EPS.” Further in the report, Global Equities Research said that only 2% to 3% of the 17 or younger age group currently uses a Kindle – hence the researcher's belief that Apple could capture such an enormous part of the market. This speculation, however, is far from a confirmation regarding what Apple will or will not announce on Thursday. Though the company is expected to announce something within the educational realm, the Mac maker has been known to surprise consumers with announcements that contradict the initial batch of rumors. The timing of these rumors – which arrived just days before the next Apple event (scheduled for this Thursday) – does not change that fact. But while many are discussing whether or not Apple will enter the digital textbook market (and how much money Apple could make), few are asking one very important question: how long would it take for the iPad maker to make a dent within the industry? iTunes was Apple's first – and arguably the best – major venture into digital distribution. With fewer iPods on the market at launch (and no iPhone), iTunes did not soar overnight. Similarly, when Apple first started selling movies and TV shows, the former was not very successful. But even now, with so many digital options available to movie lovers, Apple has yet to become the most prominent player in film distribution. It is, however, the current leader in apps, thanks entirely to the all-inclusive App Store. Unlike the non-interactive content of iTunes, items from the App Store can only be enjoyed by those who own an Apple device. This was a smart move for Apple's bottom line in terms of hardware sales (the iPad and iPod Touch wouldn't have thrived without apps). But it opens the door for competing app stores to

) would love to provide that answer, but the company is a few years too late. Apple came to music at just the right time. While I do not believe it saved record labels, iTunes has – along with Spotify – helped reshape consumer perception about the way music should be obtained. In a world where piracy threatened to take over, that is a very good thing for the music industry. Apple has not been able to do the same for movies, mostly because those who buy films still prefer DVDs and Blu-ray (especially when they come packaged with a free digital download). Everyone else prefers Netflix (NASDAQ:

) or Amazon. With textbooks, however, Apple could offer a meaningful discount in addition to the convenience and potential efficiency of having every book loaded onto one compact device. Better still, I'm thinking that most students would appreciate a search function that allows them to quickly find a page, paragraph or some other detail they are seeking just by typing a few details into a search box. While this feature is supposed to already exist (Google has been trying to pull this off with all books), it has yet to be perfected. This could be an area where Apple could really excel. And then there's Siri.