Amazon's updated e-book return policy looks like a big win for authors

Anyone who has been taking advantage of Amazon's liberal return policy regarding e-books could soon be in for a shock. That's because following discussions with the Authors Guild, Amazon has agreed to block automatic returns on digital books that are more than 10 percent read. Currently, the problem for authors on Amazon is that customers can return e-books online anytime within seven days of purchase no matter how much content has been consumed. That means if you can you read a book in less than a week, you can simply return it when you're done for free, resulting in a loss of profits for the author. However, under the new policy which is scheduled to go into effect sometime before the end of the year, Amazon will begin blocking automatic returns on e-books that are more than 10 read, which will then need to be reviewed by a representative to ensure that the return is genuine. The Authors Guild says the goal is to create a deterrent for people who abuse Amazon's current policy and to prevent people from treating Amazon's e-book marketplace as an ersatz library. Issues with Amazon's e-book return policy date back more than a decade, but had recently come under fire again after lifehacks about the company's guidelines began circulating online. And according to NPR, in some cases, abuse of the company's return policy even resulted in some authors having negative earnings balances, which typically happened when customers returned an e-book after the creator had been paid out... Continue reading at 'Engadget'

[ Engadget | 2022-09-23 19:10:20 UTC ]

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The best early Prime Day deals for 2023

Amazon Prime Day 2023 is a few days away on July 11th, but you don't have to wait until then to get a good deal. The company has started to roll out a few early Prime Day deals before the two-day shopping event officially commences, including, as expected, several discounts on its own devices... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-07-07 14:29:48 UTC ]
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The best early Prime Day deals for 2023

Amazon Prime Day 2023 is one week away on July 11th, but you don't have to wait until then to get a good deal. The company has started to roll out a few early Prime Day deals before the two-day shopping event officially commences, including, as expected, several discounts on its own devices and... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-07-04 12:48:53 UTC ]
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The best Amazon Prime Day early access deals for 2023

Amazon has announced that Prime Day 2023 will begin on July 11th, but you don't have to wait until then to get a good deal. The company has started to roll out a few early Prime Day deals before the two-day shopping event officially commences, including, as expected, several discounts on its own... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-06-30 15:20:45 UTC ]
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From the Archive: July 4, 1953

On June 25, the ALA, AAP, ABA, Authors Guild, and others reaffirmed their commitment to the landmark “Freedom to Read” statement. We look back at our 1953 reporting on its publication. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-30 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The best Amazon Prime Day early access deals for 2023

Amazon has announced that Prime Day 2023 will begin on July 11th, but you don't have to wait until then to get a good deal. The company has started to roll out a few early Prime Day deals before the two-day shopping event officially commences, including, as expected, several discounts on its own... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-06-23 16:30:09 UTC ]
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Pundits Weigh in on Gilbert's Decision to Pull Russian-Set Novel Over Ukrainian Backlash

While many authors and critics condemned Elizabeth Gilbert's choice to pull her forthcoming novel 'The Snow Forest' from Riverhead's publishing schedule, two contrary statements from PEN America and the Authors Guild show there is no consensus over the controversy. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-13 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Court to Hear Bids by Amazon, Publishers to Dismiss Revived Price Fixing Case

The hearing on the revived case comes some 10 months after magistrate judge Valerie Figueredo found insufficient evidence for the initial case to proceed. The suit accuses Amazon and the Big Five publishers of a conspiracy to fix e-book prices, a claim the publishers insist is "implausible" and... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-08 04:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors Guild Issues Contract Clause Changes to Account for AI

As part of its campaign to protect its members from the rise of large language models and other artificial intelligence tools, the Authors Guild has released four new model contract clauses concerning the technology. Earlier, the Guild released a survey of members that found that 69% of those... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-06-02 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The best gifts for the new grads in your life

Surviving years of college is no small feat, so the graduates in our lives deserve rightful praise and celebration. Whether your graduate is going out into the world to get their first job or continuing with their education, there are a number of gadgets you can gift them that will make them... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-05-01 13:15:46 UTC ]
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The Steve Jobs Archive releases e-book chronicling the Apple co-founder's life in his own words

Populated with photographs, emails, speeches and interviews, "Make Something Wonderful" is a chronological exploration of the life of Steve Jobs. Continue reading at Silicon Valley Business Journal

[ Silicon Valley Business Journal | 2023-04-12 22:11:45 UTC ]
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Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite falls back to $100, plus the rest of the week's best tech deals

It's Friday, which means it's time for another roundup of good tech deals. Today's highlights include Amazon's Kindle Paperwhite back down to $100, which is within $5 of the popular e-reader's all-time low. Apple's AirPods Pro are $50 off their list price at $200, while the Apple Watch SE is a... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-04-07 15:00:31 UTC ]
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It’s Their Content, You’re Just Licensing it

Recent automatic updates to e-book editions of works by Roald Dahl, R.L. Stine and Agatha Christie are a reminder of who really owns your digital media. Continue reading at The New York Times

[ The New York Times | 2023-04-04 23:45:06 UTC ]
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Apple's AirPods Pro drop back to $200, plus the rest of the week's best tech deals

It's Friday, which means it's time for another roundup of notable discounts on good tech. Among the highlights, Apple's AirPods Pro are back down to $200, tying the best price we've seen for the iPhone-friendly noise-cancelling earphones. Amazon has dropped the Kindle Paperwhite down to $100,... Continue reading at Engadget

[ Engadget | 2023-03-24 15:43:59 UTC ]
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Blackstone Grows Beyond Its Audiobook Roots

Blackstone Publishing has built a backlist of about 800 print and 950 e-book titles since it released its first books in those formats in 2016. The goal now, company president Anthony Goff said, is to continue to ramp up production across all formats. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-24 04:00:00 UTC ]
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The Week in Libraries: March 3, 2023

Among the headlines this week: a look at libraries some three years after the Covid-19 pandemic began; how the right wing culture war playing out in many communities has led to some librarians living in fear; the St. Paul Public Library's 'Read Brave' program enters its 10th year; and... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-03-03 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Bookshop.org to Sell E-books, Publish First Print Title

Andy Hunter, Bookshop.org CEO, told 'PW' that the online retailer is developing an e-book platform for indie bookstores from scratch, and will launch it in beta late this year. In addition, the company is publishing its first book, a collection by Lydia Davis, who did not want her book available... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
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With New Model Language, Library E-book Bills Are Back

A year after a federal judge struck down Maryland's groundbreaking library e-book law, library advocates are backing revised legislation they say can help ensure “fair and equitable licensing terms" for library e-books while avoiding the thorny copyright issue that doomed Maryland’s effort. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-23 05:00:00 UTC ]
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The Week in Libraries: February 10, 2023

Among the week's headlines: The Colorado Civil Rights Division rules that a librarian who objected to censorship efforts in her library was illegally terminated; more on the College Board's questionable interactions with Florida officials; Library Journal releases its annual budget survey... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-10 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Palace Project, Draft2Digital Strike Deal to Offer Indie E-books to Libraries

Beginning next week, the first of an anticipated 500,000 indie and self-published e-book titles from Draft2Digital and Smashwords (which merged last year) will be made available for library lending via the Palace Marketplace, the upstart Palace Project’s digital content platform. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-09 05:00:00 UTC ]
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Authors Guild Says Alleged 'Predatory' Press Has Settled Suit Over Rights, Unpaid Royatlies

Filed on January 6, the complaint claimed that Authors’ Place Press and its owner, Tony Ferraro, had failed to fulfill their contractual obligations and to pay or properly account for royalties. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2023-02-05 05:00:00 UTC ]
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