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Originally Posted by kjk
I agree that seems more likely. And Amazon could probably dictate any terms they wanted with Overdrive, not the other way around, if Amazon saw a marketing advantage in doing it.
Still not clear what business advantage Amazon really gains by supporting any format other than their own. (I can see the advantages for ebook diehards, of course).
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They gain because of Kindle's connection with the Amazon ebook store. Every time the book someone wants to borrow is checked out to someone else, or the borrowing period expires before the reader is able to finish, or it is a title the library does not have available in their collection, there will be a likelihood of purchasing it from Amazon. Why do you think publishers, and other ebook reader manufacturers, support this feature? Because it results in additional sales, driven by scarcity of an artificially limited ('free') resource.
Some libraries have already taken to purchasing Kindles, preloading them with content, and letting patrons check out a Kindle as if it were a book (yes, after being unlinked from the library's amazon account! <g>). It's cheaper and less technically involved for everyone than using Overdrive. So that's another angle patrons might query about with their library.
Philanthropically minded patrons might even donate their old Kindles to their local library to get them started.