Sorry, no posts matched your criteria.
Comments
No Comment
Read The Story That Started It All
The Industry Outcry
See the timeline of events and stories leading up to the filing of the suit.
The Court Filings
Here is the court order from Chief U.S. District Judge John Woodcock Jr. denying Amazon / BookSurge's Motion To Dismiss
Here is a PDF of the complaint filed with the court.
Here is Amazon's motion to dismiss.
Here is BookLocker's response to the motion to dismiss.
Here is BookLocker's amended complaint.
Here is the settlement.
JUST A FEW OF THE EMAILS SUBMITTED TO ANGELA LAST NIGHT:
Proud of you, Angela. I’m removing all references to Amazon from my own web site, and will order them to remove my book and short (Amazon Shorts) from their catalog. I’d rather not sell a book than have it be held hostage.
M J Melneck (OLD MUSIC)
~~~~~
Hi Angela,
Another fine job. Kudos to you and your husband for being so brave and so caring about writers and POD publishers.
Stephanie
~~~~~
I’m not buying from Amazon anymore…
Cathy
~~~~~
You go, girl!!!!
Good luck!
Nina Amir
CopyWright Communications
~~~~~
You go, Angela! Kick some Amazonian (bleep)!
Patch
~~~~~
Angela, as I always say, you are an inspiration to all writers and Americans. You are, quite frankly, A FORCE!
With hugs of appreciation,
Marion Cuba
author, Shanghai Legacy
~~~~~
Hey Angela
Thanks for standing up and absolutely being counted to the bullies at amazon and I wish you all the success in the galaxy for your legal fight.
Big Hugs,
Rainbow
~~~~~
You go girl!
- Carma
PS: Let me know if there is anything I can do to help. This not only affects me, but some of my clients, as well.
~~~~~
Fantastic!
Go get ‘em, Angie!
I have written letters, raised awareness, voiced my supreme dissatisfaction whenever and wherever.
If Amazon follows through with this absurd and monopolistic plan, I-and most writers I know-will shop elsewhere.
Keep fighting the good fight.
Beth Rubin
http://www.bethrubinauthor.com
http://www.onthewritepage.com
Delaware Curiosities (Globe Pequot Press)
Frommer’s Washington, D.C. With Kids (Wiley & Co.)
Split Ends, a novel (authorhouse.com)
~~~~~
Way to go, Angela!
If they get away with this gambit, I would like, if possible, to convert Degrees of Murder to electronic form and forget them entirely.
The more we learn about big corporations, national and local government, the more convinced I become that the conscience-less and morally moribund are seeking to take charge of our world.
Regards–and count me in on the class-action suit, if that information is of use to you.
Kevin
MORE EMAILS SUBMITTED TO ANGELA:
So many self-published authors just absolutely want to get into Amazon, as if doing so will help them sell a million books. Mostly, they want the ego-blessing of Amazon, which may help them sell one or two books. What Amazon is doing is a ridiculous money grab, but it’s their store and they can set the rules. But as a POD (print on demand) author, I say to heck (to hell, even) with Amazon, Chapters and traditional retailers and publishers… I am not going to post my most recent blog entry here, but if you want to know in detail why I say what I am saying, go to http://www.paullima.com/blog and read my reply to this question: “If you are so knowledgeable about writing non fiction, why are not published by a real publisher?” The question was asked of me; I’ve answered it. Who needs Amazon? Not me. Not me.
Regards,
Paul Lima
http://www.paullima.com
~~~~~
Thank you very much for the lawsuit – I have books I would like to have published by you someday, and am very worried about the actions Amazon.com has taken to grab power and monopolize the publishing industry. In their zeal to make still more money and provide what they consider the best speed and service to their customers, they apparently haven’t listened to their book buying customers. We do like things delivered quickly, but they could easily have the books they don’t have on hand drop-shipped from the independent POD publisher. In fact, that’s what I thought they were doing.
This is the United States of America and we believe in freedom and people’s rights and equal opportunity for all. Riding roughshod over people is not worth getting a book a little faster, and faster often equals lower quality. If Amazon wants speed above all else, it is a given that quality will go out the window. It sounds like Amazon was taken over by some very young and inexperienced people who worship speed and have not learned how things really work or developed a good value system. If that is not so and the leadership is experienced and knowledgeable, they have no excuse that I can fathom. I am sad to see Amazon so corrupted by greed that they deserve to go down the tubes as people desert them and turn to others for books that don’t fall apart. As my instructor says, businesses fail because of need, greed and stupidity.
I appreciate your sounding the alarm loud and clear, and doing something about it.
Ginny McCown
~~~~~
I think Amazon believed that everybody was going to roll over and play dead.
I AM SOOOOO PROUD OF YOU!
Hugs,
Scott
Like all empires, Amazon can be felled. If every writer refuses to buy through Amazon and their partners – this includes books, clothing, electronics, and other media – and enlists the support of their family and friends, a impressive grassroots campaign CAN happen.
You know, it’s the mice steadily nibbling away at the rope that can break this thing as well as through the courts.
As for me and mine, we took a family vote and we will NOT be purchasing anything more through Amazon or it’s affiliates.
Power to the people – especially the little people.
Thank you for fighting this fight. Writers will become the silent victims if Amazon Booksurge are allowed to control the publishing industry.
I’ve been practicing law for over 50 years, and, at one time, was the antitrust lawyer in the law department of a midium-sized NYSE-listed corporation. I had been wondering how long it would take you to file the law suit, because, in my opinion, Amazon was obviously promoting an illegal tie-in. I read the complaint, and it looks valid to me. I expect it to survive the motion to dismiss that Amazon will file to slow down the progress of the litigation.
C. Kaplan
Well done! This may be the only way to bring Amazon.com to their senses. Thanks for taking this bold move.
Dear Angela,
I applaud your stand to file suit against Amazon.com. There have been many professionals and organizations of writers, authors, and independent publishers who have spoken out against Amazon’s new policy.
At first glance, Amazon’s recent new policy looks like business as usual in corporate America—greed–with a side bar of: “how to create a mega/media/monopoly.” I believe greed and bullying are the soft words describing what is currently becoming a ‘monopoly of attitudes’ in our corporate business communities. We slept through the loss of our most precious of “human rights” during the last two political terms, allowing our U.S. policies to de-value and de-evolve the human and our standing in the world to subhuman.
“What’s wrong with us?” I have to ask myself, when, as a young adult in the ‘60’s, I witnessed countless voices not afraid to stand up and say “No!” to anyone or
anything that devalued human beings from being given a “fair deal.”
Well, Amazon, you’re not playing fair.
Can we afford to sleep through this newest ploy, and put another chink in what little hope we have in this country to save the “backs of small businesses?”
Simply put, “No!” We can no longer put our heads in the sand and say, “It’s just business as usual.”
Our time to draw the line in the sand and say ‘enough’ has already run out! If we don’t stop this incestual push to “drop kick” small businesses just as they’re rebounding, I believe America will continue to slide down the slippery slope of third world status.
There’s a term for how the younger generations see adults participating in this country’s current dilemmas. They call us sheeples. Sheeple is a term of disparagement a portmanteau created by combining the words “sheep” and “people.”
It is often used to denote persons who acquiesce to authority, and thus undermine their own human individuality. The implication of sheeple is that as a collective, people believe whatever they are told, especially if told so by authority figures, without processing it to be sure that it is an accurate representation of the real world around them.
Have I been affected by Amazon’s policy? Of course, it’s already changed how I think about Amazon.com. The honeymoon’s over.
I was actually on the Amazon.com Advantage website, completing the paperwork for their program, when I went searching through their
pages for some tidbit and found and read their new policy. I have not completed my application for Amazon.com’s Advantage program for authors and publishers.
Anybody out there want to set up a new Web site for selling books published by independent book publishers? There’s power in
grass roots disobedience.
Back in the 1980’s women and mothers were concerned about the pesticides being sprayed on apples. Those same apples (with pesticides) were being harvested to manufacture the applesauce mothers fed their babies. After a quiet, national boycotting of apples, applesauce, and baby foods with apples, mothers won! Through the simple efforts of grass roots activities, the growers finally heard their concerns and stopped the practice of spraying their apple orchards.
When there is a quoram, something shifts.
Angela, thank you for taking action. Every voice is needed now to stand up and say “No” to this type of corporate greed and manipulation.
Regards,
Toni D. Holm, Publisher
Sheeple. Reference.com. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (http://www.reference.com/browse/wiki/Sheeple
accessed: April 03,2008).
Wow, good for you Angela! (and good for us!) I’ve always loved Amazon, and have been heart-sick over the way they’ve been acting lately. I just don’t understand when greed takes over and all common sense goes out the window. If Amazon continues down this crooked path, it will completely change the way everyone views them. I’m so disappointed in them and they really should be ashamed of themselves. What goes around comes around and if they keep spewing bad energy, they’ll get it back, doubled.
Thanks again for all that you do!
Sharon Elaine
author of “The Book of Affirmations”
and “Ready, Click, Win” (How to win online sweepstakes)
http://www.unleashedminds.com
One of the big reasons I became both self-employed and self-published was that I wanted to have full control over every aspect of the works I created, and not to be controlled by Cororate America.
I have always had a strong entrepreneurial spirit and respect those who demonstrate it as well. Has Amazon forgotten what it was like to be a start-up that challenged the traditional booksellers? So now that it is a force in its own right it has decided to be as monopolistic in its business practices as the narrow-minded companies it originally challenged? I guess they feel they got theirs, so the heck with everyone else who doesn’t jump when they say to jump.
Amazon makes its money (finally) primarily off the creativity of others. If it weren’t for us authors and the people who want to read our work, they would have nothing to sell for their core business. Don’t bite the hand that feeds you!
Angela & Richard, congratulations on the lawsuit. As long as I am a Booklocker.com author, I’ve got the backing of a class act, so who cares about Amazon? I am still glad though that you are not letting them get away with it–keep up the fight and thanks!
On the surface of it, this is just such a ham-fisted move by Amazon. Here they go, alienating writers – who produce content, readers – who buy books, and writer/bloggers – who are articulate and outspoken. And for what end?
I do have to wonder what they see as a payoff; what is their big-picture, downstream goal? Might it be (as has been suggested) a lock on printing every book they sell, no matter who the publisher is?
It has to be big, in order to risk alienating so many small presses and niche writers.
Celia Hayes
Author “To Truckee’s Trail”
http://www.celiahayes.com
Dear Angela, Richard, Booklocker et al
Thank you for being our champion. Until now – like many other small publishers I suspect – I have thought of Amazon as an ally and partner. Not any more. Someone there has clearly lost the plot. Sound court judgement will surely rule out this draconian contract but even then, the breach of faith and reputational damage they have already brought upon themselves will never be forgotten.
It certainly looks like Amazon’s actions would only lead to its competition being knocked out of business. Without competition most likely prices would be run up as opposed to down. Not to mention quality, service, and customer relations could falter and both authors and consumers would have no alternatives but to put up with it.
Hang in there. I pray for a just judge and fair jury for your lawsuit.
seems that it can be nothing but illegal as Amazon is legally a vendor and not a publisher by its own definition, but why not file this letter with the Washington State Atty? Seems that Washington State doesn’t mind swatting the bullies that live in the state, including MS Vista Capable crap. good luck. She takes her job quite seriously.
stupid question– I see, here’s the answer– well Washington State Atty takes it seriously if recommending it to a Fed Court for Anti-Trust, so it probably is illegal as hell.
at least you have very sound recommendation from folks who know their stuff… go for it, but circulate and knock their socks off.
from other page:
“Wednesday, April 23, 2008 – The Washington State Attorney General has issued a statement claiming they are not planning further action against Amazon. They claim “it may be more appropriate to refer this matter to one of the federal antitrust agencies for review” and “anyone feeling that they have been harmed and wish to pursue a remedy should consider consulting with private counsel.”"
Thank you. Bless you.
I think BookSurge is on the run. On May 20, day after the suit was filed, BookSurge sent a mass Email offering self-publishing services to individual authors, including a special deal for signing on with them by the end of May. I responded. This morning, May 21, a BookSurge sales rep actually phoned me to tell me more and Emailed me a contract and other info for me to look at. Can you say “hard sell”?
Thanks so much Angela! I knew I had the right people print my book and I too was wondering how long it would be before you would do something. I haven’t dealt with you long, but I knew by what I had read you would not stand still for all of this.
I have emailed my feelings to the powers that be, have removed any mention of Amazon from anything in regards to my book, and have also quit doing business with them. Thanks for keeping us all in the loop of what they are trying to do.
Lorelei Nettles
Homeschooling and the Only Child
Angela:
Congratulations on your chutzpah! You are doing a great service to writers and publishers. I suppose you gave some thought to the burdens this case is going to bring on you and your family. You are definitely David to Amazon’s Goliath.
I have a nearly finished manuscript. You were already on my short list. Now there’s no doubt where I’ll send it — BookLocker! I’ll be blogging about this issue in the near future. In the meantime, my prayers are with you and I hope others join you.
Victor Kulkosky
Hi Angela,
If more people would stand up against these monopolies (Amazon, Google, Paypal, et al) perhaps these compaines would realise that their grass roots were born from the common folk who wanted to make an honest living.
I think that once they get big they get greedy. Once they hire accountants and lawyers things get ugly. I’m not criticising the mainstream account and lawyer, but too often what starts out as a great idea where everyone can benefit, becomes a playground for ambitious types that see only $$$$ and not people.
The Internet has become a quagmire for those who want to get out of the JOB rut and work for themselves as the good Lord intended. It is sad that the original concept that the founders of these monolithic companies has been lost to online domination. Amazon’s stance is close to the contemporary publishing houses who dominated the scene before the Internet.
I find Amazon’s POD policy appalling, and as a self-publisher I am glad I haven’t any ties with them.
Good luck with your suit.
BobW
Angela: Thank you for taking this action. Amazon.com seems to be reaching too far in many directions, including POD and e-books.
Lois Glass Webb, Author
THE JUDGE’S DAUGHTER
THE SPECTRE OF DEATH RODE THE LAND
way to go! What support do you need?
Anne Wayman
http://www.annewayman.com
Go Angela. Thanks for the extraordinary time in doing this to protect us. I’ve removed all links to Amazon from my website. I’ve e-bombed friends in Germany, Spain, England, and Canada. I emailed the link to this action and commentary to friends in Washington DC, and to the Federal Trade Commission. After I sent more notices to pals in Nevada, California, Florida, Hawaii, and Virginia…they’re dumping Amazon off their sales sites for things other than books. Hell Hath No Fury!
[...] COMMENTS can be posted to the bottom of THIS PAGE. [...]
Before I begin, allow me to state that (1) I am not in the employ of either Booksurge or Amazon and (2) I’ve already had my ethics and my antecedents and my parentage questioned because I refuse to make business decisions based on incomplete or outright incorrect information. So, don’t send me irate emails. It’s been done, and I’ve heard it all.
As someone who has used Booksurge’s printing services for nearly a decade, and who also prints with Lightning Source, I’d appreciate it if we could concede that I might know a bit more about the former than someone who hasn’t ever done business with them–or did so years ago.
If you’re going to file a lawsuit, it would help if the facts you base it on are actually facts. In the list presented, I saw very little of that.
1. ANY printer can change their per-copy charge at any time.
2. Fictionwise has the exact same “you can’t sell lower than we do” requirement for ebook publishers. You might want to add them into your suit. And the comment that publisher would never be able to sell at a lower price than Amazon is only true IF you mean on a regular basis. A publisher is perfectly free to hold sales and sell their books for as low a price as they choose. They just can’t do it constantly. Which is standard business practice.
3. Wholesale price is NOT discounted price. Wholesale price is what the books cost the publisher. Amazon is demanding deeper discounts than the standard 40%–which a good many of the publishers you cite weren’t giving them. So, they got to take advantage of Amazon’s free shipping even if it actually COST Amazon to sell the books. In other words, even if Amazon lost money on every copy sold.
Given that the net return on copies of books printed under the auspices of Booksurge (more on that later) and sold through Amazon is nearly double the return on books shipped to Amazon by other printer-fulfillment services, the discounts they require won’t hurt anybody–because the printing cost of the books is INCLUDED in THEIR share.
4. As with the price per copy, ANY printing company has the right to raise their fees and charges. As for the set-up fee, the cost depends on which route one takes. The $50 cited is the fee for CreateSpace, which is a self-publishing service used not only for books but for audio and video as well. Actual publishers utilize Booksurge publisher services, where costs are lower. As I don’t know whether a book packaging service qualifies as a publisher, I can’t speak to how this applies to Booklocker. Suffice to say one size doesn’t fit all, and what may be offered a business of one kind isn’t necessarily the one that will be offered someone else.
5. There are no “massive number of manhours” required. The same book block prepared for Lightning Source will work at Booksurge, and converting the cover flat takes minutes using an easily set up Photoshop template.
6. Unless you’re having every shipment ordered via LSI to you first for inspection, I point out that EVERY printer handles quality control in-house. And there will always be “hiccups.” What matters is how the printer handles them, and Booksurge has always dealt quickly with any problems we’ve encountered. So has LSI. They’re both professional companies not given to biting the hand that feeds them, even if all the hand is holding is a bread crumb.
And to publicly state that their quality is lower than that of any other printer is specious. They use precisely the same printing equipment as LSI and the quality of the books is precisely the same as well. We’ve shipped Booksurge-printed books to vendors for the last nine years and have NEVER had a single one complain of poor quality. Furthermore, I’ve had conversation with those who use both Booksurge and LSI, as we do, and they’ve stated they feel Booksurge actually has the better quality.
7. Confidentiality of business matters is required by the very anti-trust laws you’re utilizing. For publishers to discuss their business arrangements with Amazon or anyone else can be used as evidence of price-fixing. Nor are contractual arrangements between businesses required to be made public.
8. It’s their store. Their game, their rules. Nobody’s forced to play. No one is prevented from having books printed elsewhere and selling them through either of the other channels available at Amazon, just as no one is preventing publishers from giving short discounts. They just can’t have their cake and eat it, too.
I said I’d address the reason I used the phrase “Booksurge auspices.” If anyone’s still here, I’ll explain.
As was made known shortly after the uproar went public, Amazon’s stated reason for wanting their new policy is so there is no more delay than necessary between an order being placed and being shipped. Rather than carry copies of on-demand titles in their warehouse, they decided it made more sense to simply be able to print them when they’re ordered. They’ve installed digital printing equipment in all of their warehouses–title listed with Booksurge have been shipped this way for the last six months or so.
To do this, however, they must have some kind of legal arrangement with the publisher.
Shortly after Amazon announced their new policy, LSI announced they had established a file-sharing arrangement with On Demand, the makers of the Espresso machine. The goal of On Demand is to arrange it so that bookstores and other venues would have their machine on hand and would thus print out books while the customer has a latte.
Without a similar file-sharing arrangement, Amazon can’t print books listed with LSI. We have no way of knowing if they sought such an arrangement and were turned down or if they just didn’t bother. (See previous note about confidentiality) The point is that, without that or something similar, Amazon can’t legally print LSI books in their warehouses.
So, their only option is to establish a separate relationship with the publishers, which means via Booksurge. When asking publishers to do it voluntarily didn’t work, they made the choice to force the issue. It’s their choice as a business, just as it’s the choice of any other business not to agree. The decision was made for one reason only: to ensure the revenue stream flows TO Amazon instead of away from it.
You know: capitalism.
I have just posted a comment on Mental Health for Writers in response to a Booksurge promo for writers. My warning is writers publishing through affiliates of Amazon Booksurge WATCH YOUR TITLES.
The rot has gone further than you know.
I struggled to sort out my title rights for my new book when I migrated it from an affiliate to the Booklocker. I was already with the company when it became an affiliate and changed its price structure, also loading its shipping to authors to the point where I could not longer afford to continue processing my book.
The affiliate initially blocked the title migration by saying that it would ‘retire’ not ‘remove’ the title from its system.
Subsequently, I have been told by the affiliate that it would close my account, apparently also now a contested issue for writers. I was told that the company would ‘remove’ my existing title A Woman’s Book Of Allegory, not ‘retire’ it.
This means that the affiliate agreed to take the title out of its system. This means that the title should not appear either on the affiliate’s website or on Amazon.com.
May I suggest that you enter the title into your Amazon search. You will discover that while I have decided to no longer publish A Woman’s Book of Allegory just to retain my writer’s rights, Amazon is still advertising it as ‘out of stock’ and promises to notify readers when it is in stock. This means that interested readers are led to believe that the book is still in circulation when it is not.
The implications for writers wanting to migrate their high-end sales books to mainstream publishers are myriad. Readers associate content with titles and Amazon has first dibs on telling its customers that the title is out of stock even if it is being published elsewhere or is, in my case, off the market.
The underlying game plan is far wider and more dangerous to writers and the publishing industry than stated in the antitrust lawsuit.
Ms. Burton says too much to answer in detail, particularly as I wait hungrily for lunch. So I’ll confine myself to two points, one small and one large.
1. An odd factual error suggests there may be other errors in her rambling remarks and that she knows less about publishing than she claims. She says: “Wholesale price is NOT discounted price. Wholesale price is what the books cost the publisher.”
No, wholesale price is the price retailers (i.e. bookstores) pay for the book. It’s typically 55% of the retail price, leaving the bookstore with 45% to cover their expenses, provide their profit, and allow for any discount they may offer. A publisher couldn’t stay in business if its wholesale price equaled its cost for the book. It’d have no money to cover overhead or pay expenses.
2. Many of Ms. Burton’s arguments in defense of Amazon/BookSurge ignore a critical factor. The law doesn’t insist that businesses play nice or treat everyone the same. But it does treat a company that dominates a market enough to be considered a monopoly differently from anyone else. There competition has been effectively eliminated and, in the interest of the public, the law must step in to restore a free market. That’s why this dispute includes a claim that Amazon’s behavior will result in higher consumer prices.
As I recently told a reporter. If Barnesandnoble.com or Buy.com were to make the same demands as Amazon, I’d laugh. Neither sells enough of my books to matter. Any sales I’d loose if they dropped my books or made them harder to buy would just become additional sales on Amazon.
The same is not true of Amazon. Amazon overwhelming dominates online book sales. Quite a few people won’t buy a book if they can’t get it easily on Amazon. How they treat my books matters. Demands that Amazon makes are in a different league from demands that B&N makes. Based on bitter experience with rail and oil monopolies in the late 19th century, the law recognizes that fact and limits must how nastily a monopoly can behave.
To give one example, monopolies can’t “bundle,” meaning they can’t make one business transaction dependent on another. That’s one of the ways Microsoft got into trouble. It set bundling conditions to computer manufacturers who wanted to install Windows on computers they sold. To distribute Windows they had to include certain other software (i.e. Internet Explorer) and not include other software (i.e. Netscape). Microsoft was attempting to use its dominance of one market, Windows, to dominate another market, web browsers, in the so-called “Browser Wars.” That’s precisely what Amazon is doing.
If a federal court in Maine determines that Amazon is effectively a monopoly, then Amazon will not be able to make online sales dependent on BookSurge printing. Amazon remains free to sell or not sell certain titles based on legitimate business concerns (i.e. profitability or availability), but BookSurge printing can’t be a factor. In our case, it would mean that if Amazon gets some books they’ve just sold from Ingram, and they have to do that, then they can’t treat pod titles from Ingram any differently.
One additional note. I’m not quite sure Amazon executives realize the trouble they’ve gotten themselves into with this dispute in far-off Maine. As I understand the law, to rule in favor of BookLocker the court will have to determine that in at least one market (books) Amazon is effectively a monopoly. That decision will then have serious implications for what Amazon can do in areas that have nothing to do with print on demand. Others they try to bully can go to court without having to demonstrate that Amazon is a monopoly. Amazon will have to play a lot nicer than if would have had to do if it’d left POD publishers alone.
What a fantastic interview. It really helped me to understand this Amazon situation much, much better. Thanks for all that you do!
To Ms. Burton:
Of the many fallacies and outright misinformation contained in your post, I wish to comment on two in particular:
“2. Fictionwise has the exact same “you can’t sell lower than we do” requirement for ebook publishers. You might want to add them into your suit.”
Does Fictionwise have the same monopoly that Amazon has in restricting retail? No? Then how is that relevant?
“5. There are no “massive number of manhours” required. The same book block prepared for Lightning Source will work at Booksurge, and converting the cover flat takes minutes using an easily set up Photoshop template.”
This is a gross distortion. Firstly, Booksurge does not offer the same choice of bookblock sizes that LSI do, therefore many different sizes of books do in fact need to be reworked (unless you’re advocating some arbitrary conversion which will distort or look odd in new dimensions).
Secondly, even if the cover takes only “a few minutes” (it is far more involved than that, and you simply cannot trust such a delicate process to a macro), you would be hard-pressed to convert 50 in a day. Multiply that by the many thousands of titles a POD publisher may have, and you run into substantial costs.
However, even that is not the main issue. For me, the problem is pricing. Under Booksurge, I would need to charge an extra $4 retail TO THE CUSTOMER to avoid making a loss on every book sold. And even this would result in 5 times less profit than I currently make per book!
So the customer ends up paying $4 extra and I make 80% less profit.
If the “Free Shipping” is such an issue for Amazon, why on Earth can’t it simply make POD books not qualify for Free Shipping? I would be absolutely fine with that. Can anyone answer this?
Angela,
Just a note to let you and Richard know that we here at Jigsaw Press are four-square behind you. We removed all references (other than a BOYCOTT AMAZON notice) to Amazon from our site after you first broke the story.
On behalf of our family, friends, authors and fans we, the editor and staff of Jigsaw Press, thank you so much for standing up to the Amazon.
If there’s anything we can do to assist you in any way, please do not hesitate to let us know.
Mari
editor-Jigsaw Press
http://www.jigsawpress.com
http://forensicphotoshop.blogspot.com/2008/02/book-publishing.html
I have struggled to get my title out vs. the Amazon goliath. When I looked at Booksurge, they told me that I couldn’t do my book in full colour, being that it’s over 100 pages. My book is about colour and light adjustments – how could I not do it in colour?
Best of luck to you. I’d love to see you win this one.
Wow!…I guess we were a little naive about this topic. Thanks for educating us!
We will definitely steer any of our potential customers away from Amazon.
I’m published with PublishAmerica, a POD publisher. They’re refusing to walk to the beat of Amazon’s drum, which I am exceptionally proud of, but Amazon is just asking for it! I hope you win, Amazon is in desperate need of a taking down.
Plaintiffs should also sue Amazon under the antitrust laws. If amazon had competition it would not be able to do so much damage. Antitrust does not seem to be used as much as it ought to be these days. Violation of it is assuredly a factor in this case.
Go get ‘em, Angela! We’re behind you here. Even inviting fellow writers to do the same here: http://www.warriorforum.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=248208
And joining in class action suit against another online giant with too much power, eBay / Paypal, here:
http://techrepublic.com.com/5208-6230-0.html?forumID=102&threadID=219720&start=0
…folks, don’t let the giants run us into the ground. Stick up for your businesses. There’s plenty of room online for all of us.
Amazon is a rotten corrupt organization and i will no longer recommend that my readers go to amazon to buy my book MARY STEEN, instead I recommend alternative sellers who are at least aware of Amazons putrid, reprehensible actions being taken against freedom of speech in this country KILL AMAZON KILL THEM REAL DEAD
Perhaps it is time to give other Internet Sellers a new fresh look. I am setting up some accounts with the Amazon Jungle Boy’s Competitors tonight.
Control Nazi Freaks! Had a good thing and now ethically going to the dark side.
We saw this sociopathic stuff in computers. It ain’t happening here.
Angela,
This is an alarming development. I am a few weeks away from publishing with Infinity Publishing. I am concerned because I was charged an extra fee to be listed on Amazon and more importantly I went through Infinity because of the quality of their work. It appears as if Amazon is interested dominating in publishing while printing substandard print. I am saddened and outraged. I applaud your action. Let me know how I can help.
As a new POD author, I haven’t seen a problem – yet. I republished my two volume novel, Neitherworld, with CreateSpace simply because they offered me the option to sell it on Amazon for far less than Lulu.com, though Lulu lets me sell it elsewhere, and in hardcover. After some initial hicups, CreateSpace offered quality nearly as good as Lulu (the covers have a slightly washed out look compared to Lulu, but the interior pages are actually better in pure white as opposed to Lulu’s off-white). Both books can be purchased together for $24.50 – not bad for a 410,000 word two volume paperback novel with 11 illustrations each. The Lulu versions continues to be sold on Amazon, though I always point potential readers to the Createspace versions since they are about 40% cheaper.
I do understand why competitor POD publishers are worried about competing against Amazon – which is to the online bookselling world what Microsoft is to PC software. But, as with Microsoft, Google came along and found a new way of doing business online. Something similar needs to happen in the publishing world too.
Let’s face it; there are FAR too many books out there for the readers that exist, a fact I found out to my own chagrin, dispite good reviews and a reasonable price (though not as cheap as a traditional publisher would get for me). The issue is not whether we can sell our POD books on Amazon, it is whether we can sell them at all.
I had a book published in England with Literally Publishing, in Oxfordshire, and I learned later on that they print with BookSurge. My first 25 copies were awful! The book on top of the pile was fine, but all the others were blurred, as if they placed them together with a still wet setting. I complained and I got a second order and the same thing happened. In the meantime, I had to change the date of a book signing date that I had because I had no books to take with me. I was sad and extremely dissappointed at this and will never use BookSurge again!
Christina Brett, author of “Old Sins Cast Long Shadows”, soon to be a movie!
How can Amazon do this to the public, both readers and writers. The big corporate publishers hardly publish any great books now and each time I go to the book store and see what is coming, I am ready to cry. So why isn’t it enough to continue as they have. I have spent thousands of dollars at Amazon. I want great quality books, at a fair price and as an author I want the freedom to publish with a good publisher that will have a product to be proud ot. It was so great to be able to know my book which I have spent many years creating, would be up for sale. Everyone made some money, the authors less than anyone, and it was perfect. Why so greedy. When is enough enough? I thought that Amazon had an outlook that would help us all. But sadly it seems that they have forgotten their middle class customers and have joined the money first crowd. How will we find the little authors who have so much to offer but are not best sellers. Hard to believe this is happening.
Ginger Blymyer, author Hairdresser to the Stars-A Hollywood Memoir and Flying into the Sun, a novel, and avid reader.
Book Surge quality is so poor that no author could expect to make a living selling titles printed by this venue. Amazon has no right inflicting it on authors!!!
I stopped buying from Amazon.
Hi Angela;
I just received this info from Helen, who edits and sends FeedBlitz news. I am a first time nonfiction Author and very close to publishing with Trafford.
Thank you so much for your efforts and action on our behalf. I am certainly in favor of protecting the rights of all.
Bonnie Fournier
I hope if the case proceeds that book locker will move for a restraining order against Amazon to prevent them from turning off the buy it buttons.
Isn’t this like the movie business where the movie makers are not allowed to own the theatres or something similar.
If Amazon proceeds with it’s plans it will certainly be a form of book burning. So many will not be able to sell their books as we have in the past. Shame on them. Greedy
The magic of POD is that it has made publishing accessible to the common person, no longer making it a monopoly for the rich or elite. To have one extremely large corporation seize control of that would be akin to having someone take control over all ISPs so Web publishers would have to go through a central clearinghouse to publish anything online. That’s just crazy. So is making all POD publishers to use one provider. What’s next? Will Amazon want to take over all music publishing labels, too?
Going nuclear isn’t quite the right analogy. A better one would be a threat along the lines of, “we know where to find your spouse and kids.” Mucking with someone’s book is like threatening their family. And using “Buy Now” buttons to pimp a product so inferior the market has rejected it, BookSurge, is precisely what anti-trust laws exist to halt.
It also fits with Bezos ‘tin ear’ when it comes to the role of printed books in our society. He claimed in one interview that they’ll soon be as common and practical as horses for transportation now are. For him, books are no more than data to be displayed as crudely and efficiently as possible. (Note how ugly Amazon’s web pages are.) He has the taste of someone who’s indifferent to the context in which a painting or other work of art is displayed, regarding a shipping container as equal to a tastefully designed room. Oscar Wilde described him to near perfection when he referred to those “who know the price of everything and the value of nothing.”
Bezos also knows little of history. A century ago people tolerated large, expensive, smelly, troublesome-to-maintain horses only because they had no option. But it’s the printed book that’s the equivalent of a car that never breaks down and never requires fuel. It is always there, behaving predictability and ready to serve us. It’s the Kindle that’s expensive, requires special care and maintenance, and will soon need to be replaced, necessitating some time-consuming, legally authenticating scheme to move the data to a new machine and a new format. I still have books I bought as a kid. I don’t know where articles I wrote a decade ago have gone.
Bezos, with his obsession with technology, forgets all the ideas that fell by the wayside, rejected for reasons their nerdy inventors never understood. Another metro-Seattle company, Microsoft, was once seduced by that same nightmare, assuming there would be a computer running Windows on every desk on the planet. Look what’s happened to them.
Digital books have their niche, but Bezos’ zeal flows from the fact that they are good not for readers but for Amazon’s desire to dominate. Eliminate printing, making everything bits, and much of what makes a publisher a publisher (such as book design) goes away. Publishers become little more than middle-men between authors and Amazon. Publishers, editors and authors are to be poorly paid and tasked only with doing what Amazon doesn’t find to be profitable.
Amazon’s attitude toward publishing reflects that described in the political arena by a recent book, Makers and Takers. Amazon is willing to let others make books only to the extent that it doesn’t interfere with their ability to take a disproportionate share of the profit and power.
Fortunately, at all levels the makers are rebelling against the taker. This fight is far from over.
Hi Angela,
I’ve been quietly admiring you all these years, loving your home office news, and your great parenting style. Also, your writer’s support is the very best.
I must admit I listened to your radio interview because I just couldn’t resist hearing your voice. You were friendly, knowledgeable and business-like. I pray you’ll win your lawsuit. Keep up your important work.
Hugs to you.
Ruth
Dear Angela: There is a lot more at stake than AMAZON snubbing the Anti-Trust Law of the U.S.A. Far too many of the corporations are acting as though because they are a big business they can manipulate the rest of us.
Corporations serve by the grant of a charter. That which is granted can and, in this case, should be taken back.There are enough entrepenurial people in the world who couldd take their place. Nursing Home chains have a thing going where they actually cannot be prosecuted for abuse. I write for the elderly and this disturbs me very much. I also have three books I am working on and I certainly don’t want to surrender my individual rights to some mega corporation. Dick Learned
Amazon has reached the point now of not being particularly bothered about the ‘makers’, every distribution centre of the Company will have a Print on Demand operation, capable of producing from 500 to 2,000 books per day. The state of the art technology makes the production an easy task. When you consider that Amazon even has a huge unit in Beijing, the world is very much their oyster.
How do you stop this? How do you stop a 100 tonne quarry truck? Predictions of the demise of Amazon in the same sentence as Microsoft are, well, scary. It has taken Microsoft to run 20 odd years to reach this point. Amazon has not peaked yet, how many of us will fall before it does? I predict an upsurge and boom in the POD output from Amazon, and I fear the courts have little effect when it comes down to the bottom line. There were some who told me in 1989 when I was involved in WORM (Write Once Read Many) laser technology that having a device that could write digitally onto a disc and read it back without it being worn away was far too expensive to survive…….(!!??) They also said nothing would replace the VHS tape…. and the 3.5″ floppy disk was the only way forward for data movement…
Maybe we are going through another revolution, maybe we need to get a bandwagon that’s moving very fast before we get left behind.
Being a umble person with no legal knowledge I am trying to understand the lawsuit in layman’s terms.
It seems to me that this is perhaps like a Taxi company that has always been given business by a Hotel, to collect its guests from the Rail Station or Airport and enjoyed a good regular income. Now, the hotel has bought a taxi company and moved the office inside the hotel, the cars are parked in the car park. So, this hotel says on its website that only the cars from its in-house taxi company will be allowed to pick up its guests. Thus the other taxi firms lose out and the one that had the biggest income now wants to sue the hotel for the loss of that income.
Does that sound like a layman’s summary?
I’m a writer and a researcher. Somehow, no matter how I look at this I can’t see anything unfair about buying a business and then telling everyone that it is now the only operation that will be recognised by the parent company. I have seen this a hundred times. When I worked in the little town of Northampton in England where the shoe industry was huge, one company bought a shoe manufacturing outfit and issued an order to all of the companies that it dealt with that all its footwear would now come only from that subsidiary. A court injunction was taken out by a major shoe manufacturer who had been the supplier to all the subsidiaries of this company. They lost. It was considered to be fair competition.
I am totally unbiased on this but wonder where this will lead. I watch the continuing activity with interest.
GOOD LUCK! I hope you win this one for all of us! Mari
EVERYONE needs to stand up to Amazon. I agree with Author; this isn’t about books and ideas; it’s about power and pushing people around. Although in the long run, Amazon will only hurt itself as readers look elsewhere for a better selection of books.
What were they thinking?
I think Amazon is acting like Microsoft did in the ’90’s when the government threatened them with antitrust violations. They may have taken them to court. Anyway, I’ve been selling on Amazon for about 6 years. When we started with them, it was a good thing, but even the sellers are getting ripped now because Amazon refuses to set a minimum price for a used book and many people try to list books for .01 and hope to make money off postage.
I have a book coming out with another publisher that is involved with a law suit with Amazon. Amazon is acting like a bully–the baddest kid on the block. I hope they get their block knocked off.
Can we step back and ask what is the Big Picture for Amazon here? It seems to me that there must be a really big prize up the road if they are willing to risk so much wrath by switching off the ‘buy’ buttons and ‘forcing’ publishers to use BookSurge. So what can it be? In the UK, I’ll take a punt that the launch of Kindle later in the year has something to do with it – but I’d be interested in the view of others. There really has to be ‘another agenda’ you know!!
Please know that many of the authors published through Booklocker are with Angela Hoy and the staff at Booklocker completely on this. We support them and their efforts as they face down Amazon.
Hello Angela
I have felt that Amazon would be the way to help stimulate sales?
New to this venue I’m in Limbo at this point and have decided to go on with my sequel and let the BOOK G~D handle the future as I am powerless over that for sure!
Good Luck to you both, and please keep me informed.
Captain Nathan Lichtwar
http://www.peckerwoodtwist.com
CDC is like the Goliath of corporate firms. Their political influence reads like a who’s who of conservatives who for some reason value corporate monopolies over individuals and smalls businesses.
Looks like more evidence to show a pattern of Amazon actions for use with the lawsuit.
Angela,
Thank you for fighting for publishers and authors. Amazon “Goliath” is powerful but because of people and publishers like yourself, you will stop this takeover. We the people, each one a “David” can fight against monopolies in our own way. They took the buy button from us, so we should not buy, anything from them. We can stand against Amazon.
Thank you
Bernice Camp
Author-Broken Vessels-Tribute to a Family
Good to hear that Amazon is being affected adversely. Bullies usually rule until the masses rise up and kick their butts. Amazon should take a serious lesson as it was taught by Teddy Roosevelt so very long ago. That spirit is still alive. Whether it be the shoolyard bully or a bunch of criminals masquerading as legitimate businessmen as Amazon certainly appears to be, scumbags usually meet their Waterloo. Ask some of the other famous bullies througout history, Napolean Hitler and Saddam Hussein to name just a few.
hmmmm, glad I don’t have amazon stock at the moment
[...] Hoy’s Amazon BookSurge Antitrust Lawsuit Clearinghouse points to an article at Investor’s Business Daily by Doug Tsuruoka called Amazon Deals Have Short Shelf [...]
Hi Angela. Can I sign into the class action lawsuit? How do I do it! I resent corporations dominating the little guy! I am all about justice and due process , I have contempt for Oligarchies. Peace. Manny
I would like to thank SPAN for its support of the Booklocker which just happens to be my publisher. A truly honorable and support team deserves national backing.
I live in England and buy a lot of stuff from Amazon. I know it probably won’t help an awful lot but if it ever comes down to boycotting this Nazi monopoly I’ll be you.
That is VERY interesting!
Since I moved from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to the rural area where I now live, I have spent at least $50 a month at Amazon.com. Many months it has been over $100. Since I learned of their unfair treatment of electonic publications, I have been buying elsewhere. Until this kind of bullying stops, I will purchase nothing there that I can find somewhere else, and believe me, that is not much!
Any company that assumes a large market share and establishes partnerships with other, similar businesses constitutes a trust. Any trust, by its very nature, restrains the free market and fixes prices. Amazon joins a long line of companies that have raised the ire of their customers and must be made to play fair.
Email sent to Angela:
Hi, Angela,
Thank you, again, for your campaign against those misguided souls who decided to act like too many newspaper and magazine publishers, and let greed and power-lust drive their approach to authors.
I have just asked my friends and loved ones to stop sending us gifts from Amazon–something some of them do with remarkable frequency. My wife and I have stopped buying ANYTHING from Amazon–or known affiliates, for that matter. WE now ask those who love us to do the same, at least when it comes to sending things to us.
I have signed the petition, and now that I have Mr. Bezos’s e-mail address, will attempt to explain to him why we no longer purchase from Amazon–something that we did a lot of over the years. Granted, our one small account (perhaps a couple hundred $ per year) won’t even get their attention, but if we can influence enough people to follow suit–can you say Osborne computer????
Regards,
Kevin
The more the merrier don’t you think?
[...] and thanks again to Angela and her Amazon BookSurge Antitrust Lawsuit Clearinghouse and their pointer to SPANs [...]
Avotaynu has a follow-up article in their more recent newsletter– http://www.avotaynu.com/nu/V09N17.htm
Here’s more from Avotaynu
(Volume 9, Number 17 | July 13, 2008)
Avotaynu Books “Temporarily Out of Stock” at Amazon.com
Amazon.com has changed virtually all books published by Avotaynu to read at their site:
“Temporarily out of stock. Order now and we’ll deliver when available. We’ll e-mail you with an estimated delivery date as soon as we have more information.”
These books are all in stock at Avotaynu. Amazon.com has not ordered a book from us in about two months despite known orders made by Amazon customers.
In the previous issue of Nu? What’s New? (http://www.avotaynu.com/nu/V09N16.htm) I noted that, as a test, I ordered A Dictionary of Jewish Surnames from Galicia from Amazon. In reply to a subsequent inquiry, Amazon informed me that “Sometimes, unexpected fluctuations in supply can add time to our original availability estimate. We have learned that the item ‘A Dictionary Of Jewish Surnames from Galicia’ is now back-ordered, and our supplier does not know when they will have more in stock…”
I now have received another form e-mail from Amazon asking if I still want to keep the book on back order. Their message stated:
“Still want it? We’ll keep on trying. To keep your order for this item open, please click the link below. Otherwise, we’ll cancel your order on August 10 2008, if we haven’t located it by then… While we do our best to adhere to our delivery estimates, our inventory is constantly changing based on information we receive directly from our suppliers. Occasionally, unexpected fluctuations in supply, delays during shipping, or changes in release dates for new products will add time to our original delivery estimate.”
Amazon had requested Avotaynu to bill them for orders terms: Net 90 days. Previously our terms were cash in advance. We refused.
Meanwhile, this past week we received an order for a book we published and have in stock called Jews-Officers in the Polish Armed Forces, 1939-–1945. We recognized the company placing the order as an Amazon reseller. They sold it to their customer for $80.00. The retail price from Avotaynu is $30.00.
Ironic that the google ads on the side of the page feature Createspace.
Good interview.
I so agree! I too have emailed all my family and friends about Amazon and told them I no longer buy from them. I am a new to POD, but totally back Angela in this venture.
It is beyond me why a company that was blossoming in so many ways would attack it’s very core. Greed does strange things.
At any rate, thanks for the above letter, you said everything I would have liked to.
The giant continues to demand it’s own way through all aspects of life and business. Keep the faith and know you are being supported.
God Bless,
Earl W.
Amazon has pulled out its big guns, but in spite of its impressive legal Motion, I found your response to it equally impressive and highly informative re authors’ options for selling their POD books. I’ve given your efforts some support in my ezine and on my website. Hope it helps.
BTW . . . did you see this article, “Amazon.com to Acquire AbeBooks” just posted at http://www.auctionbytes.com/cab/abn/y08/m08/i01/s01. Looks like they want an even bigger share of the online bookseller pie than they already have.
Barbara Brabec
BarbaraBrabec.com
[...] out BookLocker filed a class action antitrust lawsuit against Amazon and BookSurge in May (the latter is the print-on-demand company [...]
DISCLOSURE: I am not a lawyer. I don’t work for Amazon, Booklocker, or anyone else for that matter. I am not a publisher or an author. I do have a stake in the future of POD, as a digital printing manager.
Amazon should probably lose this case and alter their business model a little. Although they have a reasonable argument. Not that they aren’t “tying” which it seems to me they clearly are. They are doing a couple things which seem wrong, to me: one, they make you pay for the privilege of selling your titles at their store, and two they don’t allow the same supply chain distribution (the Add to Shopping Cart button).
Amazon is free to control their own supply chain, but I think of it like WalMart. WalMart does not manufacture their own products. If they did, they’d be in the antitrust zone, I think (?). WalMart uses its power to cause suppliers to drive costs down, otherwise you won’t make a sale to them. This is fair competition, regardless of your value system re: WalMart’s corporate philosophy.
Amazon obviously doesn’t make that distinction, or they think POD isn’t really manufacturing. It’s as if the creation of the content is the product, how the product is moved from creator to reader is the “service” Amazon provides. Kindle is a great example of this. Amazon themselves are using their power to determine how electronic books are delivered to the reader. I don’t think they are benevolent about this. So, Amazon is trying to determine for themselves how we as readers get content through new technology, whether it’s POD or ebooks or MP3s (I have to download an Amazon player? What the?).
On the other hand, and I hate to say this, but Amazon, as a retailer, doesn’t HAVE to sell books supplied by anyone they don’t want… they say that in their motion. I don’t know if Booklocker’s lawyers can prove otherwise. Does the complaint seek to get Amazon to restore the “Add to Shopping Cart” button for any publisher or POD printer? Or does the complaint merely seek to call what Amazon is doing illegal? If it turns out the says it IS illegal, what then?
I wonder if there is a less litigious solution. Probably not, you guys have probably tried to reason with them… why Amazon is printing books in the first place, to me that’s the dubious part of the whole thing.
jeff@jefflazerus.com
Thanks for the update… I guess the next step is your response to Amazon’s motion? Keep up the good work.
A
BookLocker’s response is HERE.
[...] (www.thegoldenpencil.com) On July 31, 2008, BookLocker filed their response to Amazon’s expected motion to dismiss BookLocker’s suit against the online retailer for its insistence self-publishers use Amazon owned BookSurge to receive preferential treatment on the virtual bookstore. The announcement was made to the blogosphere on Angela Hoy’s Amazon BookSurge Antitrust Lawsuit Clearinghouse blog. [...]
Amazon, having decided its bullying and illegal businless plan a priori, in the face of this law suit was not going to do what is right in the interest of 1) anti-trust laws; 2) free speech and; 3) the public.
Many are the meritricious arguments in Amazon’s answer; one is gratified to see them so skillfully and persuasively debunked.
However, the company’s executives should rethink their obnoxious and apparently illegal business plan vis-a-vis POD publishing, because of the way implementing it would affect free speech and consumers in contemporary society. Historically, failing a great stroke of improbable luck or connections to the likes of Jackie O, even the best of writers had a titanic struggle to get published. A Confederacy of Dunces is considered a classic today, but the writer did not see it published in his lifetime. POD publishing has made it possible for the public to more immediately connect with the works of the John Kennedy Tooles in our midst. Surely Amazon realizes that the file conversions it wishes to impose on POD publishers wishing to continue to sell their products through Amazon are so unfeasible for the POD companies that enforcing the policy will wipe out the advantages that the public has lately gained with respect to becoming acquainted with worthy, contemporary writers. Every business wants to maximize its profits but putting bottomless corporate avarice above social progress . . . social progress which the corporation should be proud to advance . . . has here reached a point where it may adequately be labelled as despicable.
Apart from questions of free speech and the general cultural climate, Amazon wants to bully the competition between printers out of supplying the public with a high quality product sold at a competitive price. Already one may easily verify that the sole printer Amazon wishes to impose on its markets does not produce the most luxurious of printed pages, bindings and covers. Only the most foolish of fools would believe that that printer will improve the quality of its products once the competition has been eliminated.
Amazon should not abandon its plan because of a law suit presented by Booklocker; it should abandon it in the name of a cultural and social decency. Ultimately, Amazon will be strengthened, not weakened, by abandoning this misguided and hateful strong-arming.
Thanks Richard and Angela for keeping the info coming. Know that it is immediately disseminated even if I don’t get around to commenting that often.
I have no problem with what Amazon is doing, but only because I dealt with distributors and wholesalers in the 90s that took 65 percent from the cover price of my self-published books. Don’t know what it’s like these days, but if Amazon disappeared physical world distributorships with the “Add to Your Cart” button thing and Kindle format standardization—t’would be OK with me. (There’s a lot of misinformation out there.)
Go get ‘em Angela.
In reading about Amazon’s actions I see similarities with recent actions by E-Bay.
Both companies have lost sight of who exactly enables them to stay in business. Their first concern is boosting the bottom line so the corporate elite can cash in on their options. Their second concern is pleasing the analyst’s on Wall Street who can help make or break a companies stock.
Both companies need buyers, customers, but they’ve lost sight of the fact that if they have no sellers, also their customers, they will not have any buyers. And, sadly, both companies seem to feel that sellers, on E-Bay, and Publishers, on Amazon, are a nuisance to be tolerated and bled until there’s nothing left.
While Amazon and E-Bay are still the Wal-Mart’s of the on line selling world I see a time coming when they will go the way of the dodo as smaller companies and new companies come along that care about all of their customers whether they be buyers or sellers.
Mr. Murphy has the right to take his business elsewhere. No one has the right to use the armed force, might and power of the police to prevent Amazon from invoking its own business strategy. Amazon is a private company. It has the right to set up its own business the way that it wants. It is not using armed force to require anyone to do anything against their will. No one is compelled to be its customer. If people don’t want to be its customers, Amazon will fade. Mr. Murphy is in the right in refusing to deal with Amazon but, if he supports the antitrust lawsuit by Booklocker against Amazon/Booksurge, he is in the wrong.
As an author of a POD book that once was “published” by BookSurge, I know what Amazon is doing.
I had the President of BookSurge tell me in 2006 that Bezos “wanted to acquire ALL book titles,” past, present and future and that “Amazon was buying up large amounts of no longer in print titles” to that end.
Amazon is now using its position as a huge retailer to acquire current POD titles for itself so BookSurge can print them (which BookSurge will do badly.)
Amazon is forcing POD companies to either hand over their titles/authors or be excluded from the benefits of selling their books in a normal, non third-party fashion.
To answer Jeff’s comment (see below) about there possibly being a “less litigious” way to deal with Amazon:
No way. Amazon simply does not respond to publishers/authors.
One thing I didn’t see addressed by Plaintiff’s lawyers was the issue of Amazon being able to make more money off the POD titles it acquires. If Amazon has its own company publish them it obviously will get a bigger percentage of the sale price.
Can’t believe that Amazon is being so hard-nosed on this issue.
It seems to me that their entire approach, including their motion to dismiss, is condescending, to say the least.
I guess they think they’re big enough to do anything they want. Hopefully they will be knocked down a peg.
Great response to their motion. Thought it was well stated – precise and to the point.
Anxious to see what court response will be.
Keep up the good work.
John
Dom’t it figure! The more things change the more they remain the same. Bezos reminds me of a rat being slowly cornered. But he is in trouble however as he is more of as mouse studying to be a rat. ood luck Jeffie! I think you are going to need it.
Yes, indeed, pot meets kettle.
Amazon seems to have shifted strategies since then, preferring to become the new Goliath and primed to be shot down by a few smooth stones. After all, Amazon shares the same vulnerabilities–and they’re all in the head.
I started using BookSurge as my POD printer prior to knowing that they and Amazon had this “thing” going between them. I am the author/publisher of my book. It is the 2nd edition. The lst edition was printed using a traditional printer and is currently available through Amazon. BookSurge has to be the worst nightmare I could have engaged in. They are slower than slower, non-communicative, printed the wrong book cover, would only mail books to my home address and nowhere else, and would not mail the books FedEx, even at my expense when I need them for a speaking circuit. I am still waiting for the second half of my 200 book order that I ordered in July! I received 100 with the wrong book covers because I was desperate for the books and agreed to take them (of course, paying the full amount!). There is nothing I can say good about this company and I cannot believe that Amazon and its founder would go for this. They do not have the capacity to handle multiple book orders. Believe me, everyone will know about this on all my speaking circuits, my conference calls, radio interviews, etc. They have cost me book sales and I am definitely not a happy camper!
Sheila McCurdy
paul rix wrote:
> Hi Angie,
Good luck with your case against
Amazon. It seems as though they are going to try the same thing over
here. Over my dead body! If they think they are going to use ****
BookSurge to produce inferior copies of my books, just so they can make a
few extra pennies per copy, they are sadly mistaken! I told one of their
bosses this at a book festival recently, in front of quite a large
crowd, mainly publishers. One of AuthorHouse’s bosses backed me up. I
was actually quite embarrassed by the cheer I got.
I’m with you 100% Angie. The thing is, over here they can’t print a
single copy without the author’s permission via his or her publisher. I
own the copyright on my books and my publisher has a contract with
Lightning Source to print the books, which they do very well and
quickly. We don’t actually sell many at all directly through amazon,
indirectly by others who ‘piggy back’ on amazon, and usually discount
below Amazon’s price, yes. Many of these offer 2nd hand copies, which
turn out to be new ones ordered as required from Lightning Source.
The whole thing is a mess, with so many fly by nights trying to
make a quick buck out of authors, thank heavens I got lucky and picked a
good publisher at the start.
[...] – Example of types of letters Jeff Bezos is receiving from authors saved by Sander792008-10-30 – jeff bezos: the new steve jobs? saved by colibri2008-10-29 – Jeff [...]
I’m an author with eight books. Early on, I placed two of my titles on amazon.com. Soon, I learned never to do that again. Imagine my surprise later when a customer called saying amazon.com was showing my most recent book – Healing Shine – as “out of print.” When I checked the site, there it was…shown as “out of print.” I had never sent amazon.com the book, the cover, or any information whatsoever. Attempting to correct this situation, I contacted them only to be told,”Send us inventory of this product, then we will remove ‘out of print’ message.” A half-dozen emails later, nothing has changed. Amazon.com continues with the message that my book is out of print. It is not out of print. It’s obvious amazon.com isn’t singling me out – they hardly need any of my books to survive – but rather employing a strong-arm approach to intimidate authors into doing business with them. Anyone have any advice?
Michael Johnson
Johnson Farms
Campbell, Texas 75422
michaeljohnsonbooks.com
I’m late to the game but I’m also boycotting Amazon. I’m actually upset that I just sent some stuff for Christmas. Doesn’t matter. It’s the last penny they see from me.
Some people may not think this matters because the only people using POD technology are self published writers, however this could put small presses out of business.
[...] recorded first by guilefleury on 2008-12-14→ Example of types of letters Jeff Bezos is receiving from authors [...]
My first book was stolen by the publisher by not paying me for the royalties. As a POD Book the rights have reverted back to me but once again I feel another loss having had my book distributed by Ingram who of course was connected to Authorhouse in 2005, when my book was published.Amazon is just another company trying to become an oligopoly. You can use me as a good example. Amazon has me listed on their site but I am back in control of my book. As you stated in this article only those who have a copy of my book can sell it for the price they want for it. “Simplicity” is under ISBNS as follows:
9781420838510 & 1420838512.I’m using it to my advantange now. My heart goes out to you for fighting for all of us effected by this take over. I’ll be republishing “Simplicity” with the same picture since I own the copyright to the picture also. If I can be of any help don’t hesitate to email me. Thank you again!!!
Debbie J. Smith
The unknown Poet….”Two round trip tickets that you can’t buy, was given to me in the twinkling of an eye. When I returned home. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
I am now concerned that it looks like first it was authors and publishers,then pirated software, now it is artists/music labels and movie makers need to look into this. It looks like Amazon is trying to free itself of any liability by allowing its sellers to sell pirated DVDs and CDs. I was originally a naive customer, but have received suspect CDs. If they issue refund I am still taking pictures of my last pirated CD. Hope more people get involved to make a news story about Amazon so that Amazon gets butt kicked for this.
I hope your legal team can keep the discussion on point. And I say that because, having read Amazon’s motion to dismiss, their desire to obfuscate the issue with meaningless sidetracks to pointless ends is clearly evident.
All I can say is I’m pulling for you.
thank you, again, for all your efforts in this lawsuit, and for protection for your (and other) writers! Many are in agreement with you in this matter.
The motion to dismiss happens in nearly every lawsuit. It’s relatively cheap, and gives a judge a chance to dump frivolous lawsuits. Remember, it can be reversed if necessary.
While suing an insurance company, we were astounded when a judge granted a motion to dismiss with prejudice (ie, go home and don’t come back). The defendant had found some obscure provision of ERISA that seemed to make them immune to the suit.
We had that reversed eventually, but it wasn’t quick and it wasn’t cheap.
Keep on truckin’ and good luck.
I like to quote Pat Buchanan (of all people)on multinational corporations like Amazon.com, which he defines as “amoral behemoths”–and Buchanan is, most of us know, a right wing conservative. He’s not the left-wing liberal one would expect to voice this anti-corporate sentiment. It comes out of his Jesuit education–Amazon.com and the multi-nationals ARE amoral. Nothing matters but the bottom line and growing ever and ever bigger.
We live in a country with a moral foundation–the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution–that is increasingly RUN BY amoral monster corporations. This is at the core of the current economic disaster. In this case of Booklocker vs Amazon.com, Amazon’s lust to control all aspects of publishing is an attack on a vibrant part of America’s publishing scene, ths small independent publisher and its survivability.
Give us a break, for God’s sake! Don’t they ever have ENOUGH?
maggy
cape canaveral FL
As the owner of a blog site that brings in hundreds of new visitors daily, I had read with keen interest this story.
You see, I have (HAD) Amazon dot com as an advertisor on my site. I then read an article in the Brit paper (The Times) about how they treated their employees in the UK.
That was all I needed, I pulled their ads and wrote a piece about why I did it.
Way to Go Angela and Richard.
Prayers for your win (prevailing).
If yo prevail, the next step is they will try to “Summary Judgment you!”
Stay strong,and be blessed.
Many of us are in agreement with you in this matter.Thank you for all your efforts to protect us,writers’rights.
Though I’m a conservative, I find this bullying tactic of Amazon’s management to be inexcusable. Monopolies are just the same as dictatorships when it comes to restricting the customer’s freedom of choice. Competition, not monopoly, is what has made western nations wealthy. Like Hitler’s Enabling Act of 1933, Amazon wants no competition from companies which might actually do a better job than they can.
Amazon’s compassion is best summed up as, “Amazon grew at express speed and profits were waived for the sake of growth to make it impossible for others to duplicate their achievement.” The mantra was “Eat another hot dog, get big fast!” (http://www.internet-story.com/amazon.htm)
God Speed, Angela and Richard, may you hold them accountable for them proudly, making it impossible for others!
[...] know about that, you could start here, then graduate to reading the actual legal complaint here. It’s an ongoing class action suit.) Shepard doesn’t deny that Amazon is ruthless but [...]
I hope your side prevails and that the judge will be able to cut through all the legalese and give you a verdict that will justify your action actionst Amazon.
You are standing for principle, honor, and justice. May you be strong. May the judge be wise, firm, and fair. You are heroes. — Bob
Richard & Angela:
Prayers are for you on Monday! God Bless you.
Jim Little
I agree completely with Booklocker’s law suit. A similar situation occurred years ago when Microsoft essentially put out of business competitor’s of their Office program. WordPerfect and QuattroPro, which were superior, were essentially cut out by MS when they bundled Office with Windows “at no extra charge” but would not discount Windows without it. They succeeded in doing this because of their overwhelming size. Once a huge market for Office was established it made little difference that the courts started laying down rulings that prohibited their monopolistic behavior. The damage was done!
[...] people are saying! Please post your comments regarding this situation to the bottom of this page: http://antitrust.booklocker.com/booklocker-files-class-action-lawsuit-against-amazon#respond. addthis_url = ‘http%3A%2F%2Famarketingexpert.com%2Fameblog%2F%3Fp%3D288′; addthis_title = [...]
Hi Angela,
Personally, I don’t see that you have a choice. Requiring publishers to go with Booksurge will you and others like you out of business.
I’m ready to write my first POD book and am afraid they’ll own too much of my book. I feel self publishing is the only way for me since I’m not a big name in my field (etiquette instructor). When I read the Booksurge contract online I was horrfied!
It reads as if Amazon owns you: your title, your profits, even when you cancel the contract ( see #14 “miscellaneous” of the contract ).
First thing I wondered was…. how will I (the self publisher) know for sure how many books are printed and sold. Seems to me, if Amazon is this disingenuous in a contact why would they be honest with your royalties. They are obviously VERY interested in their own profits… not the publisher’s.
I’m most concerned about # 14 in the contract where is reads: “sections 4,5,6.1,6.2,6.3,7,8,9,10,13,14 will survive termination of this agreement”.
What do you think?
Ms. Kent
[...] April 4, 2005: BookSurge LLC. Amazon buys a print on demand fulfillment company. Later, Amazon would prevent other POD books to be sold through Amazon’s online retail store. Booklocker has sued. [...]
[...] – Secret Business Strategies of Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos saved by ytask2009-04-09 – Bezos’ Raised Antitrust Fuss 10 Years Ago When Amazon Was Threatened saved by kimonogals13042009-04-05 – Google Earth? saved by burnsml2009-04-04 – jeff bezos and marc [...]
[...] May, Bangor, ME–based POD publisher BookLocker.com filed a class action lawsuit against Amazon, calling the company’s moves “highly suspicious.” The Small Publishers Association of North America (SPAN) voted to support BookLocker in the lawsuit [...]
Are there any updates on this case? I first learned of Amazon’s monopolistic action this past March (2009) & have been periodically checking to see what’s happened with the case.
Regardless of outcome, I will not use BookSurge for my POD plans, even if it means I can’t sell on Amazon — just because of the wrongness of their action. I hope you win, but I know that the courts are pretty corruptible these days when it comes to granting special rights to big business.
We are currently waiting for the judge to make a ruling and this could take days, weeks, or months.
-Angela
I have felt powerless until today when I found this website,where there are attempts to correct injustice to POD authors.My book. “Where Do little Girls Go”( published in 2002 by Infinity Publishing.)even has three ISBN numbers attached to originial.I’ve not had royalties in 4 yeard, It’s been listed available on Amazon for 6 countrie, Google lists it in India.Canyou help? Can I help? So glad something is being done about this abuse. Charlene Ballengee-Baum
Yes, I have had big problems with Booksurge. I am a travel writer and I was working on a 4 book series called “Snow Sport Lovers Travel Guide” 2 of the books went to print, the 3rd book “The Rockie Mountain States” was kicked back by booksurge saying that is was not print ready, I never received my authors copy and was too busy working on another book o go back and fix what was wrong with the Rockies book, strange, the rocky mount. Book appeared on Amazon for sale at 108.00 not the 26.99 the book should have sold for if it was in print; they sold by book to a 3rd party. Plus I have not gotten a royalty ck for over one year.
Can you help me?
239-209-6009
Karen J Morris
It is beyond me why a company that was blossoming in so many ways would attack it’s very core. Greed does strange things.
I’m so thankful to have ran across this information before signing on with Amazon Advantage… My instincts were telling me that it would not be a good idea and after reading some of their terms, I thought I’d better seek info on complaints and voila!!Thanks!!!!
Phyl
Hipeee…looks like there is justice in America, and big money doesn’t always win. God Bless Richard & Angela
I know I am but one of a multitude of well-wishers, keeping our fingers crossed, in the hopes that you will persevere and win your suit against Amazon.
I know you guys are floating on cloud NINE right now. I’d say it’s about time for a drink! (or even two)
As a long-term Booklocker author with my latest book in POD production with you now, I am thrilled that you have accomplished this early win for all of our benefits.
I’ll continue to hold good thoughts! You are the best, and you deserve it!
Melanie Jordan
Author of “What You Know Is Worth More Than You Know(TM)”
Dear Angela and Richard,
Congratulations on an important victory against what is clearly an unfair and restrictive trade practice. Good luck as you move forward!
Richard and Angela -
May God bless you richly for standing up against a self-serving monster.
You will be in our prayers as you continue your battle.
The battles that the are most difficult to win are typically the ones most worth winning.
Ed
I am excited to hear that your case will go forward! Good work! Amazon needs to discover that there are many of us who are not in favor of their locking us out of the market because we won’t print our books with them.
Anyone who has ever published a book, is rooting for you. Thank you, from all of us.
Debbie Madison
Terrific. I generally like Amazon but this seemed pretty high handed. At least they don’t get a pass. I can’t see them winning this just based on the merits.
Way to go, booklocker…While this is just the first step, with the Obama regime,I kinda suspected the outcome Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder coulda seen it).
God bless
Wonderful news! I hope, as I said to email to Richard, that this will get huge publicity in WSJ, NY Times, etc. It IS BIG BUSINESS news, not just something we (us) PODers benefit from. Major in terms of the future of publishing itself.
maggy
This news is like rain after a long, dry season. Enormously proud of your courage and fortitude.
Yay for our team!!! It is great to finally get some good news after everything that is going on now-a-days. We appreciate you Angela & Richard!
Deborah Midkiff
Wow! Great news in a world where big players on the Internet usually have their way. Thank you, Angela and Richard, for the unbelievable vigilance, effort, perseverance, and sacrifices you’ve made for me (us). All the Best, and a Big Hug!
Great news! It’s about time someone put Amazon in their place. Good for you. We will continue to pray for victory. Alright now, you two relax. Worry is a useless emotion that accomplishes nothing. You do what you can do and that is all you can do. So, there you have it. hugs and blessings.
Way to go!!! It’s always heartening when the fight for fairness is balanced by the scales of justice. Keeping the faith will mean more victories like this in the future.
I have never read a ruling from a court case. But, this one was a definite read. I must say, you guys have been fighting a tough battle….
Good Lord! What a great job! Makes me proud to know ya!
Lots of Hugs….
YEEHAW!
That about sums up my feelings at this point.
Okay, I read the pdf and think I understand it.
Going by this (my understanding of it) GOOD FOR YOU Angela and Richard!
Standing up to those who think they are too big to be stood up to.
The force will be with you…
Congratulations! The myth of American democracy is that the underdog can triumph. Thanks for not letting go of the dream.
[...] You can find out more about the suit, and keep up on its progress, at the plaintiff’s blog. Digg us! Slashdot us! Share the news. [...]
[...] You can find additional details including a link to the entire order at the Amazon BookSurge Antitrust Lawsuit Clearinghouse. [...]
[...] suit against Amazon over its POD practices. Amazon filed a motion to dismiss the petition which was denied by the Court. This means that Booklocker can proceed with discovery which includes document production and [...]
[...] link is being shared on Twitter right now. @nola_lee_kelsey said Federal Judge Denies Amazon’s Motion [...]
Yes! Amazon is so clearly in the wrong here. In fact, I wonder if they’re trying to back off without looking like they’re backing off.
Since their original move was on a weekend, they must have known this was dodgy and possibly illegal.
Go, Angela!
To date i have published two books, one i published on my own and paid to do so with booksurge in 2004 called “When There are Dragons there is Alzheimers” the second book was published through pa in 2006 called “Through the Maze of Life”. They are both poetry books, the first has gone nowhere, i am not very good at marketing, i’m 63 years old, the second has given me three royalty checks, all under $2.00. yes, i know, i went from the pan to to the fire, thats what happens when your in you 60’s and want to see your words into print before you die, have something for your grandchildren to say about you or follow in your footsteps. that hasnt happened, and not all of my poems are bad. Am i disgruntled? yes Am i hurt? yes Am i angry? hell yes. But to date i havent known what to do, till now and my fighting irish has surfaced. Where do I fit in to this scenario?
sincerely
mary etta metcalf (pen name)
poet and author???
Way to go! So glad to hear you didn’t roll over … as that would have been what Amazon wanted. Keep fighting with them … I’m preparing my first book to bring it to ya’ll!!
Angela, our angel of justice,
My novel “terrO.R.” – a medical liability thriller – (fiction ?) is available on Kindle for almost 2 years. During this time the book was listed on different categories but never on the “medical thrillers” one, were it belongs. Most other such books (from both traditional and POD publishers) are listed correctly.
Could this be due to the fact that my paperback edition comes from Booklocker ?
I just wrote:
“Could this be due to the fact that my paperback edition comes from Booklocker ?”
I meant:
“Could this be punishment for the fact that my paperback edition comes from Booklocker ?”
BEST,
JJN
Go Angela
Anything you can do to discredit or at least make public the shenanigans of Amazon would be a strike for justice. . .well at least a start in the right direction. I agree that my book, soon to be POD by BookLocker (I hope) doesn’t need Amazon at all. I am closing my account with Amazon, I’ll go elsewhere. What’s happening now? Is it over? Some of us just sit around not knowing what’s going on. That’s not usually me, but in this case I am guilty. Go get ‘em.
Mary
As an author now stuck like a fly in amber in Amazon’s byzantine labyrinth of books and ebooks, I know well what kind of monster it is. To date I have had NO sales of the print books from any supplier I use, and making changes so that my current editions are properly presented and sold are impossible. Therefore, in future I will not be submitting my books to Amazon or its Kindle supplier. I have been incommunications with my congressman, and he has in turned passed my recommendations to the FTC. Amazon is completely oblivious to the complaints it receives from disenfranchised authors and small publishers every day, and their response tactic is to ignore the problems and hope they go away. Little did I realize, however, that Amazon has been taken to task by the FTC before for acquiring Alexa, in 2000. I suggest you hunt down the articles pointing out the arguments Amazon used for that. As a response to Amazon’s arrogance I now sell my books and ebooks directly from my site in a variety of formats through other suppliers and markets, and plan to continue doing it that way for the future. I would advise anyone else not wishing to get involved with Amazon’s “Imperial entanglements” to do the same. The choice is up to the individual, of course.
Wow, congratulations on your Davis v. Goliath victory. I’m still quite leery of Amazon, as I think it distorts online retailing to the same extent that Wal-Mart distorts brick-and-mortar retailing. It’s just too big now.
We have a book at Xlibris (whose customer service has been getting worse and worse, to the point that it’s just laughable now). I’m going to overcome my inertia and look into transferring the book to your service.
Thanks again for your efforts.
Kudos for all your hard work and for also helping so many others in the industry. There’s plenty of room for the big and little guys – and others in between. Here’s for working together for better solutions!
Social comments and analytics for this post…
This post was mentioned on Twitter by victoriastrauss: Amazon settles anti-trust lawsuit filed by self-pub service Booklocker http://tinyurl.com/yaj98c3…
It’s unfortunate this has all taken place with minimal media attention. Public outcry and the threat of lost sales seem to be the only things that makes Amazon think twice about such troubling actions. Thanks for spreading the word about the settlement. Kudos for your devotion and determination to such an important cause and best wishes for continued success.
As a Booklocker POD author, I want to thank you for the time and effort you spent on pursuing this issue. You rock!
Hey Angela and Richard -
CONGRATULATIONS! This is amazing. Truly amazing.
You did it. You persevered through the years of legal stupidity, and sacrificed time and endured incredible stress. Well done!
You two are real heroes in my eyes.
On behalf of all the indie publishers and their authors: a big thank you!
Best wishes,
Bruce Batchelor
Agio Publishing House
Victoria, BC, Canada
Thank you Ang! I was staggered to see that your costs were $300,000 – thank goodness Amazon paid them. I know this doesn’t compensate you one red cent for your time and I appreciate your willingness and guts to stand up to Amazon’s attempted bullying. It feels good to be a POD author with Booklocker.
Congratulations Angela, thanks for taking a stand against Amazon.
[...]Amazon has agreed a settlement with Booklocker.com in their class-action lawsuit filed against them in 2008 by the author solutions service. The lawsuit was taken against Amazon by Booklocker.com following the giant e-retailers strong-armed attempts to force publishers using POD printers for their book lists to switch to paying Amazon’s own POD printer, Booksurge. Booklocker.com took the filed the lawsuit against Amazon claiming the e-retailers actions violated federal antitrust laws in the United States.[...]
Thats great news Angela and Richard. Way to stand your ground and not back down. I cant wait to send you my manuscript for you all to read and hopefully you all accept it so I can be published through a great publisher. The poetry manuscript is still in the works and will be done soon. Best wishes to the both of you. Eric.
I am very grateful that you had the courage to stop those who tried to take away a chunk of my liberty.
My total admiration for you and Richard on filing this action suit and staying with it when other POD publishers “folded” to Amazon’s demands. You’ve proven “where there is right, there is might”, and I appreciate and compliment you for doing so.
Thank You…Thank You…THANK YOU! – MJ
You guys *rock*!
(Say hi to Richard for me.)
Steve
[...] action lawsuit was filed, and after a judge refused to throw out the case, it looks like Amazon quickly agreed to settle (thanks Achura). Unfortunately, from the wording of the agreement, even though this was filed as a [...]
[...] the announcement the settlement [...]
[...] violation of federal antitrust laws for its print-on-demand (POD) policies. The two have now settled that [...]
[...] Please read and comment on BookLocker’s blog: Amazon Backs Down; Settles Antitrust Lawsuit [...]
Thanks for having the courage to do the right thing. That’s such a rarely seen characteristic today, when everyone is ruled by fear.
Yeah!!!! I knew that Book Locker was my kind of publisher with an activist spirit to boot. In this day and age, in any day and age, we want service providers to remember who they are serving and you at Book Locker seem to have that clear!
I am excited about choosing you for my publishing needs! Thank you for fighting for us and not being intimidated. Now, if we could talk Obama into the same kind of push back, we may have a chance!
Dear Angela and Richard,
Thanks soooo much for taking the bit in your teeth and running with this–especially with so little peer support. It was not only the right thing to do, but shows your authors once again how much you care about them. As one of those authors, thank you, Thank You, THANKYOU!!!
Keoki Gray, Author
Song of the Archaeopteryx
Angela, thank you for pursuing Amazon on this issue. I’m very happy the little guys won one against the big guy.
I have major concerns about large companies like Amazon behaving in a monopolistic manner.
Angela and Richard! Congrats, congrats, congrats!
I’ve been watching this with great interest. (I was sold on your company before this happened, and with this you’ve definitely won me over.)
All the best,
– Daniel
[...] This isn’t the first time Amazon has pulled buy buttons from publishers, though the last time they did it, it was from small, independent publishers. At that time, Amazon allegedly was trying to force small publishers to move all POD books to Amazon’s BookSurge/CreateSpace service. Amazon recently lost an anti-trust suit over this. [...]
Dispatches from the Ebook Wars: Macmillan vs. Amazon…
For some time, publishers and others have been concerned about Amazon’s policy of pricing ebooks at $9.99, regardless of the price tag publishers put on them. Many feel that Amazon’s discounted ebook pricing is an attempt to control and monopolize th…
Great reading about your Amazon fiasco. I’m a new member so it’s all fresh. Thank you for taking up such a huge commitment. Hope you’re enjoying more time with your little one, the growing years are SO important! Judy
Dear Angela…
Congratulations on winning! More power to you.
About two years ago you published my short piece on writing public service announcements for local radio.
Keep up the good work.
Always look forward to your newsletter.
Jim Williams…
Booklocker, run by Writers-Weekly editor Angela Hoy, has reached an
agreement with Amazon in the antitrust class action lawsuit it filed
against the online retailer in 2008. Amazon wanted to force all
print-on-demand publishers to use BookSurge, or, in other words, pay
Amazon to print their books. Amazon also threatened to remove the
‘buy-it-now’ buttons from these publishers if they didn’t comply.
Amazon has backed down from this and also paid $300,000 towards
Booklocker’s legal fees. For more on this story visit:
http://tinyurl.com/yaj98ca
[...] If you like these articles and job links, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting! Write well and often, AYou may already know this, but on January 20 Angela Hoy published Amazon Backs Down; Settles Antitrust Lawsuit Filed By BookLocker. [...]
are all of your books going to continue to be available at amazon.com? Indefinitely?