Once again, Amazon is in the middle of legal controversy, as
the New York Times Business Day reports that groups representing authors (like
the Authors Guild) and independent booksellers want the US Department of
Justice to look at anti-trust action against Amazon, story by David Streitfeld
here.
The story suggests that Amazon hinders placement of some
authors or subject matter, or seriously undercuts regular booksellers. The story also discusses concerns over Amazon’s
command over the e-book market.
It is not apparent, however, that these complaints seem to
affect self-published books. In rare
cases, Amazon has withdrawn books when there is large public outcry over
content (such as pedophilia). Amazon
doesn’t seem concerned about sales performance as far as being interested or
willing to keep “indie” or POD books listed.
In practice, some independent booksellers probably fear that
the popularity of inexpensive e-books (even give-aways) undercuts the interest
of some consumers to visit their stores.
It is certainly easier to order a book from Amazon on line and go to a
store to get it. But you do have to pay
for prime membership to get the free shipping.
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