Amazon ebook pricing battle intensifies after 'Authors United' ad

Compares Hachette dispute to past paperback fears, but partially quoting George Orwell is a risky moveAmazon has hit back following an open letter from more than 900 authors criticising its licensing dispute with publisher Hachette, which was published as an ad in the New York Times.However, the latest blog post from the Amazon Books Team is raising eyebrows within the publishing industry due to its use of a partial quote from George Orwell in support of its cause.We have made Amazon many millions of dollars and over the years have contributed so much, free of charge, to the company by way of cooperation, joint promotions, reviews and blogs.This is no way to treat a business partner. Nor is it the right way to treat your friends. Without taking sides on the contractual dispute between Hachette and Amazon, we encourage Amazon in the strongest possible terms to stop harming the livelihood of the authors on whom it has built its business.With it being so inexpensive and with so many more people able to afford to buy and read books, you would think the literary establishment of the day would have celebrated the invention of the paperback, yes? Nope. Instead, they dug in and circled the wagons.They believed low cost paperbacks would destroy literary culture and harm the industry (not to mention their own bank accounts). Many bookstores refused to stock them, and the early paperback publishers had to use unconventional methods of distribution places like newsstands and... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'

[ The Guardian | 2014-08-11 00:00:00 UTC ]
News tagged with: #status quo #penguin books #market share #big businesses #reading public

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Amazon Unveils Its MatchBook Print-and-Kindle Combo Deal

Amazon today launched the MatchBook program it announced last month, which lets owners of select print books bought on Amazon get the Kindle ebook versions for $2.99 or cheaper. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2013-10-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon releases MatchBook for Kindle

It has been nearly two months since online retail giant Amazon announced its MatchBook feature for Kindle, complimenting the previously unveiled Autorip service for music. Now, the company finally shows the feature the light of day, unveiling MatchBook availability effective today. If you aren't... Continue reading at Betanews

[ Betanews | 2013-10-29 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Yahoo Still Looking to Ignite Tumblr's Ad Potential

Trending on Tumblr: advertising. Four months since its acquisition by Yahoo, the hip publishing platform continues to feel its way as many advertisers grapple with how and why they should tap into its 143 million network of blogs. Tumblr’s next push will be to help brands “amplify” their... Continue reading at AdWeek

[ AdWeek | 2013-10-28 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Publishing will get new publisher, based in Seattle

Amazon Publishing will have a new leader when publisher Larry Kirshbaum leaves on Jan. 17 and is replaced by Daphne Durham. Durham will be based in Seattle — not the New York office. She has served as editor in chief and has already taken over responsibility for adult trade books and children’s... Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal

[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2013-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's top NY publishing exec to depart

Amazon Publishing, which launched a general-interest book publishing operation in New York two and a half years ago, is losing its top executive here.Seattle-based Amazon announced Friday that the head of its general-interest publishing division, Larry Kirshbaum, would leave the company Jan. 17... Continue reading at Crains New York

[ Crains New York | 2013-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishing Executive Larry Kirshbaum to Leave Amazon

One of Amazon.com Inc.'s top book publishing executives, Laurence Kirshbaum, will leave early next year, Amazon said, a sign of the difficulties the retailer has had in establishing itself as a major book publisher. Continue reading at AllThingsD

[ AllThingsD | 2013-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Simon & Schuster and Yilin Press in Deal for Worldwide EBook Distribution

Earlier this month, Simon & Schuster and Yilin Press announced a new distribution and publishing agreement that will expand the availability of electronic editions for works in Mandarin for readers worldwide. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Enthrill Reimagines “The Original Discovery Engine” for Ebooks

Enthrill's Kevin Franco discusses his company's distribution platform to make ebooks salable in brick-and-mortar stores through ebook gift cards and author cards. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Instagram Rolls Out In-Stream Ads As Facebook Seeks to Boost Mobile Revenue

Instagram's cautious roll-out of its in-stream ads is now underway.U.S. users who open the app in the coming week will see an "educational ad" from Instagram itself, according to a blog post. Confirmed advertisers to follow it are Adidas, Ben & Jerry's, Burberry, General Electric, Levi's,... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2013-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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First book prize for Edinburgh author

Edinburgh author Angela Jackson is named the winner of the 2013 Edinburgh International Book Festival's First Book Award. Continue reading at BBC News

[ BBC News | 2013-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Publishing confirms Kirshbaum exit

Amazon publishing editor Larry Kirshbaum is leaving the company early next year and returning to... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-25 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers Confront Digital at Conference: 'Magazines Are the Original Native Ads'

Joe Ripp, the newly installed CEO at Time Inc., has spent the first eight weeks on the job firing up his troops for the company's spinoff from Time Warner next year. On Wednesday, he seemed intent on rallying the magazine industry as a whole."We're not really competing with each other," Mr. Ripp... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2013-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon Has Big Sales Gain, Small Loss

Total revenue at Amazon increased 24%, to $17.09 billion, in the third quarter of 2013 while its operating loss was $25 million, down from $28 million in the third quarter of 2012. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2013-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Charted: Which Magazines Made Ad Age's Magazine A-List Most in the Decade?

Every year Ad Age's Magazine A-List honors glossy titles that are doing great in print and intelligently building their brands in digital media or elsewhere, and you can find the new 2013 edition right here.But which brands are the biggest repeat winners?We charted the biggest winners in the... Continue reading at Advertising Age

[ Advertising Age | 2013-10-24 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The Bill Murray Solution to Better Ads

Mike Cole thinks brands should be more like Bill Murray. At the Digiday Publishing Summit on Tuesday, the reddit sales exec urged brands to be flexible and not pass up opportunities to "be awesome." Cole, who believes the legendary comedian can teach brands a thing or two about responding in... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2013-10-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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How Publishers Measure Native Ads

Publishers still aren't sure how to measure the effectiveness of native ads. Some say pageviews are the answer. Others say the proof is in engagement. At the Digiday Publishing Summit this week, we asked several publishers how they quantify the success of native ads at their publications. Here’s... Continue reading at Digiday

[ Digiday | 2013-10-23 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Vice named Ad Age's publishing company of the year

When Vice first appeared on Ad Age's Magazine A-List in 2010, it raised more than few eyebrows among industry stalwarts. For one thing, it was the first free-distribution magazine Ad Age had ever honored. And another thing—OK, the main thing—Vice is a cheerfully irreverent, quasi-rude... Continue reading at Crains New York

[ Crains New York | 2013-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Ether for Authors: Where Is Publishing’s Jetpack?

A look at a the week's round of web musing on the future of publishing in concept, creative work, and technical production, after Frankfurt Book Fair. Continue reading at Publishing Perspectives

[ Publishing Perspectives | 2013-10-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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EU lines up ebook VAT debate

The harmonisation of VAT across print and digital books could move a step closer this week with... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2013-10-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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