[porkupan]

I am not sure if I may be considered a real Amazon hater, as I am often a customer of theirs. But I admit that given a decent choice I prefer to buy elsewhere.

Cannot see how Goodreads acquisition is anything but an anti-competitive move by Amazon.com. What were they looking for when considering whether to buy Goodreads? A better book review database? Well, i doubt it. Theirs is already the biggest, having been accumulated over almost 20 years of dominant Internet's presence. I believe, despite all usual claims to the contrary, Amazon will (1) direct the Goodreads members to Amazon for purchases and (2) cut off the competition from access to Goodreads user content database.

My understanding of Goodreads business model is that it was a social network of book-lovers/readers, and in that respect parallel but very similar to Amazon's own product review system. Yes, it has some cataloging capabilities, i.e. "To Read" lists, progress meters, etc. They are also parallel to Amazon's own existing capabilities, and don't constitute any particular know-how worth millions of dollars anyway. What made Goodreads different was that as an independent online entity, it had not been actively driving members to make purchases at a particular vendor (Amazon?), but rather offered a choice of competitive purchase links. Also, it could license access to the user-generated content (reviews) to anyone willing to pay: Google Books, Google Shopping, Kobo, Sony, Apple, etc. I don't know how many vendors could afford to incorporate Goodreads reviews into their bookstores, but I believe some did. In my opinion, product review databases are the holy grail of Internet shopping, and he who owns the biggest and the best, owns the customers.

What business sense does it make for Amazon to continue the current Goodreads business policies? About as much as it made for Borders to outsource its online operations to Amazon when it did it at the end of 90's. Only Amazon is not run by delusional fools, while Borders was. So, my personal hunch is that Amazon is buying Goodreads to either kill it, or to use it like IMDB to generate business. Pretty good for Goodreads backers and stockholders, bad for its members and very bad for general public. Amazon being a one-stop shop for everything is OK with me. Amazon being the only game in town - not so much.