Quote:
Originally Posted by Ea
I think most of us here has purchased our book while remaining in one country - I know I certainly did. Or I may misanderstand you  |
I think jenshale means why would some books be "territorially restricted" on redownload while others aren't, if you bought them all while in the same country?
(If I'm wrong, jenshale please correct me.)
In the thread above, s/he will see others have had the same problem. It looks like some books (especially Mobipocket versions) are no longer available from outside servers previously used by Fictionwise to serve purchased books. It is quite possible that those servers have been changed to reject download requests from "outside" countries, after the "geolimitations" imposition, and haven't bothered to account for books bought before the Electron Curtain came down.
As I said, some of the 20 books I couldn't download from my Bookshelf had that "territorial restrictions" rejection message, and I think those were from a Bookshelf-redirected address with "lightningsource" in it. I did complain to Fictionwise, but just as with any previous support requests, I did not receive any reply.
jenshale, it's not that we're being inconsistent in any way. The publishers have been inconsistent. For years, we could buy ebooks from all these sites internationally. Suddenly, the publishers decided to stop us. The retailers (like Fictionwise) depend on the publishers for books. You'll notice the smaller publishers (Multiformat books) haven't cut us off. It's the "Big 5" or "Agency 5", five major publishers who comprise many different imprints. They are selfish, stupid and shortsighted. I really hope the smaller ("indie" or independent) publishers benefit from this.
You can complain to Fictionwise about this, even try to ask for a refund, if you don't actually have a copy of the book you bought. They have, however, changed their Terms and Conditions, so you have to download your purchased book promptly (accounts vary from one week to one day) because Fictionwise won't provide backup to you, like they did before. You could check this thread to see if anyone else did get a refund.
In general, when you buy your books, download them immediately and make a backup on another disk. You can also use DropBox or another "cloud" service to backup files. Always backup. You never know when you'll need it, but when you do, it's so valuable!
Meanwhile, I'd also advise looking for ebooks in your own country, or in a country which has more shared publication contracts with you than the U.S. does. In Australia, we now have Borders AU, an online ebook store with an increasing range of books and some competitive prices. It's a start, and worth supporting. We can also look for and support ebook vendors in the U.K., since our publishing contracts are usually linked with the U.K.
The whole situation sucks, but as customers we actually have the power. We can vote with our wallets. Don't buy from the "Agency 5". Look for new, interesting authors supported by independent publishers. Support self-publication platforms. Buy directly from authors' websites.
Technology is about change, and our choices can help drag the book publication industry, kicking and screaming as it is, into the 21st century.