Quote:
Originally Posted by gmw
Now I don't have a problem with any of that, it makes perfect sense to me ... with the not so minor exception that no one else (that I've found) is following the same rule. In particular, both Smashwords and Amazon need foreign authors to have a U.S. tax number, and I really can't see what makes BookBaby any different. It is quite strange. I guess I'll see what my accountant has to say.
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I'd be interested to hear. There are some differences in the way Amazon and BookBaby handle sales. For example, BookBaby appears in Kobo, etc. as the "publisher" of the book; Amazon doesn't. Amazon exists (I believe) as a separate entity in each geographical area, and it's only the .com outfit that retains local tax; BookBaby is a single company that distributes worldwide. Don't know if things like this make any difference.
BookBaby are not new to this - does anyone know how their music distribution worked?
Amazon do have a bit of a reputation for hanging on to other people's money (see threads about VAT in Europe). If a significant number of non-US authors don't bother to get a US tax number, Amazon may be banking 30% of royalties for up to a year before passing it on to the IRS. Good move accounting-wise.