Amazon.com and 'Big Five' publishers accused of ebook price-fixing

Class action lawsuit filed in US claims the houses have colluded with the online giant to keep prices artificially highAmazon.com and the “Big Five” publishers – Penguin Random House, Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan and Simon & Schuster – have been accused of colluding to fix ebook prices, in a class action filed by the law firm that successfully sued Apple and the Big Five on the same charge 10 years ago.The lawsuit, filed in district court in New York on Thursday by Seattle firm Hagens Berman, on behalf of consumers in several US states, names the retail giant as the sole defendant but labels the publishers “co-conspirators”. It alleges Amazon and the publishers use a clause known as “Most Favored Nations” (MFN) to keep ebook prices artificially high, by agreeing to price restraints that force consumers to pay more for ebooks purchased on retail platforms that are not Amazon.com. Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2021-01-15 13:04:33 UTC ]
News tagged with: #publishers accused #ebook price-fixing #online giant #simon schuster #law firm #district court #retail giant #retail platforms #ebooks #macmillan

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Will New Apple Chief Mean Shift for Publishers?

Apple, its products adored by consumers all over, has nonetheless had a complicated relationship with publishers, who have battled with the tech giant over its intractable position involving the sale of content on its devices. But those who have railed against Apple's hard-headedness are... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2011-08-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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BookSlam to publish first anthology

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Thu, 25/08/2011 - 14:38 The "literary nightclub" BookSlam is to venture into publishing, releasing an anthology of new material inspired by music from the likes of Irvine Welsh, William Boyd and Simon Armitage. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hearst Magazines group publishing director returns to IPC Media

Drew Kirkland, group publishing director for weekly women's and TV titles at Hearst Magazines UK, has been appointed publishing director for TV brands at IPC Media. Continue reading at Media Week

[ Media Week | 2011-08-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Smiths News boosts business with airline and ebook business

Smiths News, the newspaper and magazine wholesaler, has completed the purchase of the remaining assets of Dawson Holdings, which include its ebook unit and its newspaper and magazine airline distribution business. Continue reading at Media Week

[ Media Week | 2011-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Chaos hinders Japanese ebook market

Written By: Michael Fitzpatrick Publication Date: Tue, 23/08/2011 - 08:26 A confusing maze of ebook stores, a difficulty in rendering text and high costs of purchase are dissuading Japanese customers from buying into ebooks. The chaotic melee now taking place in Japan, as publishing makes room... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Will January 1, 2013, Be Doomsday for Publishers?

As Don Henley told the New York Times, what's at stake is "fairness" and "parity." The Eagles lead singer, who also heads a group called the Recording Artists Coalition, was referring to a revision to copyright law, made in the 1970s, that could drastically affect the ownership of some of the... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-08-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Holistic Publishing 1O1

Digital technology is transforming the world of textbook publishing much as it is changing every other aspect of the book world. Digitization is bringing down the cost of textbook content, transforming static print works into interactive learning experiences and allowing publishers to create and... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-08-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publisher Spending Flat on Manufacturing/Production Technology

The good news: Publishers aren't cutting manufacturing and production budgets as much as they did last year. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Hodder releases enhanced One Day ebook

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 18/08/2011 - 15:01 Hodder has today (18th August) released an enhanced film tie-in ebook of David Nicholls' One Day, titled One Day Plus. The ebook is priced £5.49 and features footage from Nicholls' appearance at the iTunes Festival this... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Digital companies "have stranglehold on publishing"

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Thu, 18/08/2011 - 15:35 Canadian novelist Kate Pullinger has said the power of Amazon, Apple and Google has put publishers in a "difficult situation". read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Argos to launch ebook offer

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 19/08/2011 - 08:50 High street stalwart Argos is planning to launch ebooks on its website in a bid to grow its recently launched book offer. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-18 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AUDIO: 'Ebooks could threaten writing'

Booker Prize winning author Graham Swift believes digital publishing could threaten the livelihood of authors in the future because they are being paid too little. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2011-08-17 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Laura Frerer-Schmidt Named Publisher of Women’s Health

Laura Frerer-Schmidt has been named publisher with Rodale’s Women’s Health magazine. Slated to begin her new position on September 6, Frerer-Schmidt comes from Self magazine, where she was associate publisher. Continue reading at Folio Magazine

[ Folio Magazine | 2011-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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EIBF denies link with Publish America

Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Tue, 16/08/2011 - 08:45 The Edinburgh International Book Festival has said it has no relationship with print-on-demand publisher Publish America, after the US firm sent letters to its mailing list of authors promising their books will be... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers "lax" on physical quality of books - Daunt

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Mon, 15/08/2011 - 15:49 Waterstone’s m.d. James Daunt has accused publishers of being “lax” in not paying enough attention to the physical quality of books while warning bricks and mortar bookshops will not survive unless they are good enough. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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£24k price tag to reopen New Cross Library

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 12/08/2011 - 08:22 Supporters of New Cross library have claimed the council is demanding £24,000 in annual rent to reopen the library. It is due to reopen tomorrow (13th August) as New Cross People's Library, in a trial venture run by local... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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HarperCollins ebook sales 11% of revenue

Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Thu, 11/08/2011 - 09:10 HarperCollins ebook sales now comprise 11% of its total revenue, the company has said following parent NewsCorp's latest results. As has now become customary, figures for HarperCollins were not stripped out. There was no... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Big Green Bookshop to hold riot benefit

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Thu, 11/08/2011 - 08:57 The Big Green Bookshop is to hold a comedy gig to raise money for the victims made homeless by the "appalling behaviour" of rioters in Tottenham last weekend. London’s Wood Green where the bookshop is based was also hit by... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon bypasses Apple rules with Cloud Reader app

Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Wed, 10/08/2011 - 15:45 Amazon has launched a Kindle Cloud Reader app, just two weeks after it, along with other ebooksellers, was forced to remove links to its Kindle store from its native app by Apple. The company said the new tool could be used... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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AppWatch : A Look at What Publishers are Launching in the Mobile Space

Move Over Rubik's Cube ... There's a New, Addicting Puzzle in Town App: Esquire's Hardest Puzzle Ever Produced by: Esquire magazine (Hearst) Price: First level and sponsor level are free; next four levels cost $4.99 (total) to... Continue reading at Publishing Executive

[ Publishing Executive | 2011-08-10 00:00:00 UTC ]
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