Fantasy author accuses the online giant of using its market dominance ‘to control what we write and what we read’The grande dame of fantasy Ursula K Le Guin has weighed in forcefully to the debate about Amazon’s role in publishing. In a blogpost on the site Book View Cafe, entitled “Up the Amazon with the BS Machine, or Why I Keep Asking You Not to Buy Books from Amazon”, the American author has spoken out against what she describes as the company’s increasing influence not only on the bookselling market but also on which books get published, promoted and read. Her fierce conclusion is: “Every book purchase made from Amazon is a vote for a culture without content and without contentment.”After an analysis of how the “Best Seller Machine” has worked in the last decades, Le Guin writes that the online retailer is changing the culture of publishing. The Amazon model, she writes, is “easy salability, heavy marketing, super-competitive pricing, then trash and replace”. The ideal book, under this template, is “a safe commodity, a commercial product written to the specifications of the current market, that will hit the BS list, get to the top, and vanish. Sell it fast, sell it cheap, dump it, sell the next thing.” Continue reading... Continue reading at 'The Guardian'
[ The Guardian | 2015-06-03 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Tue, 27/09/2011 - 09:26 Amazon has reportedly dubbed its new tablet device Kindle Fire, with the digital company set to unveil it tomorrow (28th September). Techcrunch, which revealed details of the device at the beginning of September, reports the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-27 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Mon, 26/09/2011 - 15:05 Trident Media Group, a New York-based literary agency, has launched Trident E-Book Operations, which will create, manage and implement ebook strategies for its authors. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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No doubt with hopes to mirror the success of its Food Network Magazine, Hearst is launching another television-channel based publication: HGTV Magazine. Continue reading at Folio Magazine
[ Folio Magazine | 2011-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Mon, 26/09/2011 - 08:45 Zadie Smith, Jeanette Winterson, Blake Morrison and Mark Haddon are among the big names contributing to a Vintage essay collection described as a "mission statement about the paramount importance of reading to our quality of... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-26 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon has launched its long-promised library lending program for its Kindle e-reader, and says more than 11,000 libraries are participating. E-book competitors -- like Barnes & Nobles' Nook, and Sony's Reader -- already offer something comparable. Continue reading at AllThingsD
[ AllThingsD | 2011-09-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Wed, 21/09/2011 - 12:05 Amazon has made books for the Kindle available across 11,000 local libraries in the United States. Customers can search for books on their local library's website and choose a book to borrow. Once selected, customers can choose... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Wed, 21/09/2011 - 09:03 Libraries in Seattle have started testing the feature that allows readers to borrow books using their Kindle. Amazon signed a deal with Overdrive earlier this year to provide the service, which the retailer said will be... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-21 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Charlotte Williams Publication Date: Tue, 20/09/2011 - 08:17 The Natural History Museum has launched its first ebook for the iPad, created from the most expensive book ever sold. The ebook of The Birds of America by John James Audubon features all 435 illustration plates of the... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Bookseller Staff Publication Date: Tue, 20/09/2011 - 10:00 Amazon has begun rolling out its Appstore worldwide, with a selection of customers across western Europe, India and Australia getting early access. The store offers apps for Android-enabled devices, such as Samsung or HTC... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Mon, 19/09/2011 - 11:47 The Office of Fair Trading has said it now expects to announce its decision on the Amazon takeover of The Book Depository by late October. read more Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Yahoo is gearing up to launch an HTML 5-based system called Livestand for magazine publishers wanting to cut the costs of getting onto iPad and Android apps. Continue reading at Media Week
[ Media Week | 2011-09-19 00:00:00 UTC ]
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The long awaited launch of BookRiff, the system that promises to let people mix and match content from various sources to create their own book, is now slated for the end of September. Continue reading at Publishers Weekly
[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Caroline Horn Publication Date: Fri, 16/09/2011 - 08:20 Bonnier's new publishing initiative, headed by former Bloomsbury Group editor-in-chief Sarah Odedina, will be called Hot Key Books, and aims to have its first books published in time for the Christmas market. Odedina, who is... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-16 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Thu, 15/09/2011 - 15:23 Digital short story publishing house Shortfire Press has launched a new app which presents sound and video content when a reader reaches a certain point in the text. The Papercut app was produced in conjunction with digital... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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IPC Media has announced a number of proposed changes for monthly fashion title Marie Claire next year, including a larger format, a redesigned website and a new biannual fashion magazine. Continue reading at Media Week
[ Media Week | 2011-09-15 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Graeme Neill Publication Date: Wed, 14/09/2011 - 09:54 Google is close to launching an Australian version of its ebookstore, the first time the digital company has expanded the service outside the United States. The move raises speculation that a UK launch could be imminent.... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-14 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's rumoured streaming-book service would be great for businesses, students, and educators. Here's why. Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2011-09-13 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Amazon's "Netflix for E-Books" lending program is still a rumor, and not popular with book publishers, but here are some ways it could work. Continue reading at PC World
[ PC World | 2011-09-12 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 09/09/2011 - 09:30 Waterstone's is to launch its own e-reader in 2012 inspired by Barnes & Noble's Nook device. Waterstone's m.d. James Daunt has spoken to BBC Radio 4's "You & Yours" programme, on the edition to be broadcast today at 12... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Written By: Lisa Campbell Publication Date: Fri, 09/09/2011 - 16:39 The Big Green Bookshop is marking the scrapping of the iconic decade-long Waterstone's three for two offer by launching its own. For one day only (10th September) the London independent bookshop based in Wood Green will be... Continue reading at The Bookseller
[ The Bookseller | 2011-09-09 00:00:00 UTC ]
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