Quote:
Originally Posted by BearMountainBooks
Just FYI, from what I have read, that charge goes directly to the wireless company in the country of origin (not the US.)
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Which doesn't really fill my heart with joy, considering I have a Wi-Fi only Kindle.
Anyway - (if this is true) - I do realise that it's a lot easier for Amazon to make every single customer in a certain country pay for the 3G of everyone, rather than differentiate between customers with 3G Kindles and everyone else.
I don't know about Canada, but I'm pretty sure that Amazon has never come out and stated, clearly and explicitly (in the other countries), that this is what the surcharge in all those countries where they add it is meant to cover. I've asked their customer service; the response I got was "unfortunately we do not offer any international surcharges" (yes, "bzuh?" was my reaction to that). And they do have "price includes free international delivery" under every single title.
I'd feel a lot less irritated by the surcharge if Amazon was open about it. :-/
(Actually, I'd feel a lot less irritated if Amazon stopped going on about "free international 3G", if it's actually that much of an issue for them, and charged the people with 3G Kindles extra for downloads over 3G. Not only does it appear that I have to pay for the convenience of other people, but I'm also charged extra VAT on that - 15% VAT on, say, $9.99 is, well, less than 15% VAT on $11.99, and it adds up when you buy a lot of books. But a clear, open, honest statement on why they charge it would go a long way.)
... On the other hand, Amazon stopped adding the $2 to free books last October or November. Which, well, I'm not complaining, but it makes one wonder why they don't want customers to pay for the 3G costs of downloading those.