I received an email from Amazon announcing
its new Unlimited program that provides royalties for books read by
subscribers to this new service that allows readers unlimited access to
all participating author's works for a monthly fee. The new subscription
service is Amazon's answer to Scribd and Oyster. It did not take me
long to find the usual Amazon catch though: exclusivity. Authors who
wish to have their indie books listed in this new service must restrict
distribution of their Kindle titles to Amazon--just like KDP Select. In
keeping with the Select paradigm, Amazon will add $800,000 to its Select
global fund for author's royalties under this new service.
While this may be a very welcomed addition for authors who distribute their books exclusively through Kindle, the exclusivity arrangement is unappealing to me and I will not participate, just as I no longer participate in KDP Select. I already enjoy access to Scribd and Oyster as well as BN, iBoks, Baker & Taylor, Library Direct, Overdrive and other retailers (including Amazon) through Smashwords. Although I would gladly participate in this new Amazon subscription program as a reader and author if exclusivity were not required, giving up much more appealing distribution channels for an Amazon-exclusive distribution is about as appealing as buying shares of the Brooklyn Bridge. Ayone feel differently about this?
While this may be a very welcomed addition for authors who distribute their books exclusively through Kindle, the exclusivity arrangement is unappealing to me and I will not participate, just as I no longer participate in KDP Select. I already enjoy access to Scribd and Oyster as well as BN, iBoks, Baker & Taylor, Library Direct, Overdrive and other retailers (including Amazon) through Smashwords. Although I would gladly participate in this new Amazon subscription program as a reader and author if exclusivity were not required, giving up much more appealing distribution channels for an Amazon-exclusive distribution is about as appealing as buying shares of the Brooklyn Bridge. Ayone feel differently about this?
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Victor D. López
Recent Books:
Business Law: An Introduction, 2nd Edition
Business Law and the Legal Environment of Business, 2nd. Edition
Intellectual Property Law: A Practical Guide to Copyrights, Patents, Trademarks and Trade Secrets
Mindscapes: Ten Science Fiction and Speculative Fiction Short Stories
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