Haven't seen this posted yet. This is from June 4 NY Times:
Quote:
The Authors Guild on Monday urged its 8,500 members to protest the Department of Justice’s proposed settlement with three publishers, a proposal that clears the way for Amazon to lower prices on e-books.
In the group’s most extensive public statements since the Justice Department filed a lawsuit against Apple and several publishers in April, the guild will encourage its members to submit comments in writing to the government during the 60-day comment period required before a settlement can be approved.
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Quote:
If e-books become cheaper, the guild’s reasoning goes, they become even more attractive compared to print books, drawing even more consumers away from brick-and-mortar bookstores.
“We think it’ll further entrench an online monopolist and isn’t good for anyone concerned with books in the long run,” Mr. Aiken said. “Amazon’s habit of selling books — particularly the most popular front-list books — at a loss is a direct threat to those bookstores. It’s an unfair way to compete, and it’s destructive in the long run. The book market becomes radically different if bookstores largely disappear.”
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http://mediadecoder.blogs.nytimes.co...ment/?src=recg
What he doesn't say is that prior to the Agency model, Amazon was purchasing wholesale and in fact the authors were making *more* money, even though Amazon *may* have been selling at a loss.