UK: TESCO to close Blinkbox books

[fjtorres]

Via The Digital Reader:

http://the-digital-reader.com/2015/0...linkbox-books/

The bad news:

Tesco has announced this morning that it will be shutting down Blinkbox Books, one of its digital subs. Apparently the rumored deal to sell it to Waterstones has fallen through, leaving Tesco few options other than to close the store:

We have taken the decision to close our e-book service blinkbox Books. We’ve learnt a lot since launching the service and whilst we saw encouraging levels of take up, we believe that we can do more for our customers by focusing on our core business. The service will close by the end of February.

Tesco has been having financial issues for about 6 months now, and as part of its cost-cutting measures it has decided to get rid of its money-losing digital sub, Blinkbox.

The worse news:

I'm still looking for info on how consumers are going to cope with losing access to their ebooks. I can see in the FAQ that the ebooks are locked inside the Blinkbox apps, so downloading an ebook to Adobe DE is out, but at this point we don't know whether Tesco will be doing anything to compensate readers or help them move their content to another platform.

More details should be filtering out over the next month.

[darryl]

I am not without sympathy for those caught. Hopefully Tesco will either voluntarily make appropriate arrangements or be forced to. However, it amazes me that so many readers use platforms like this. I'm also amazed at the number of companies that introduce these platforms, which are a significant step back from Amazon or Kobo or even Barnes & Noble. I have a great deal of confidence that Amazon at least is unlikely to do the wrong thing in the future. On the other hand, Barnes & Noble have already taken the first steps in that direction. But even with Amazon, I would be very reluctant to buy any ebooks which are not Alf-friendly. This is a lesson taught to us again and again by situations like this. Best of luck to those caught out.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by darryl

Hopefully Tesco will either voluntarily make appropriate arrangements or be forced to.

Hopefully.

But, depending on their terms of service, they don't *have* to do anything.
That's the "beauty" of app-locked content: it doesn't promise transportability. All you're buying is the right to read inside the app.

So all they have to say is they will support the app for the forseeable future.
They might even maintain a cloud site for reinstalls but they are under no obligation to help their customer move the books out of the app.

[DrNefario]

Originally Posted by darryl

However, it amazes me that so many readers use platforms like this.

I rather suspect that not enough people use platforms like this, and that's exactly the problem.

(I have a Tesco-branded android tablet, which came with all the various blinkbox apps pre-installed. I've never so much as opened any of them.)

[Mike L]

If Tesco don't immediately announce some way of "liberating" the books, and if a reasonable number of people make a fuss about it, it is inconceivable that Tesco won't do something about it. After all, they are still one of the largest businesses in one of the most competitive markets, and their good reputation is vital to them. It will only take one hostile comment in the press, and they will be obliged to find a solution (in my opinion).

Mike

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by Mike L

If Tesco don't immediately announce some way of "liberating" the books, and if a reasonable number of people make a fuss about it, it is inconceivable that Tesco won't do something about it. After all, they are still one of the largest businesses in one of the most competitive markets, and their good reputation is vital to them. It will only take one hostile comment in the press, and they will be obliged to find a solution (in my opinion).

Mike

Wouldn't it depend on the number of people affected?

If it were a big number the store would still be open.
If it is a tiny number they could possibly give refunds.

It is the middle ground where trouble lies: Tesco may not be able go afford refunds or have the mechanisms (or rights) to offer up standalone files.

The precedents I remember are iSilo and TomeRaider.

[latepaul]

I installed Blinkbox books when it first came out - always curious about new ebook platforms. I bought exactly 1 book from it, mostly to see if the DRM could be broken. It's fairly easy to find the actual book file. I couldn't find the equivalent of an Alf for it online and whilst I had vague ideas of having a crack myself I never got around to it.

The other thing to note perhaps is that Tesco has also sold off its Blinkbox Music buisness today. I suspect that this is part of a wider strategy to streamline less profitable parts of the business.

[Polarpenguin]

Thanks for the info. I have 1 Blinkbox book, which was 1 of 3 freebies I received after going to an author Q & A event they sponsored last year.
Thankfully, its the one I don't really care about. The other two which I aim to read eventually, are hardbacks.

I do sympathise with anyone who bought books through them & will now loose access to their books.
I've no idea how many Hudls & Hudl 2 (tesco branded budget Tablet) have been purchased over the last couple of years, but would assume at least some of those people bought ebooks via the pre installed app.

[Lin2412]

Well this is a turn-around. People were really expecting Waterstones to acquire the platform. Anyway Tesco is still really successful at its forte even if their digital content endeavors didn't get the results they planned.

[Mike L]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Wouldn't it depend on the number of people affected?

The precedents I remember are iSilo and TomeRaider.

Yes, I take your point.

Of course the difference between Tesco and iSilo / TomeRaider is that the latter are/were dedicated ebook-specific apps. Tesco, on the other hand, is a much larger business, for which their Blinkbox operation was a tiny part. Any bad press they might get over the closing of the ebook business would reflect badly on the company as a whole, and therefore something they will want to avoid.

Well, that's my guess, for what it's worth.

Mike

[latepaul]

Just received an email from Blinkbox Books:

As a beloved customer of blinkbox Books, we wanted to let you know as early as possible that sadly, the decision has been made to close blinkbox Books.

We really appreciate your custom and we want to make sure you don’t lose out on any of the ebook purchases you have made with us.

So, what’s happening to my ebooks?

To keep you up to date on developments, we are currently in talks with Kobo, a global leader in eReading, to offer a solution for you to keep and add to your personal ebook library.

blinkbox Books and Kobo will be working together to transition your blinkbox Books customer library to the Kobo service, ensuring you continue to have access to your previously purchased ebooks and have the option to buy new ebooks from Kobo in the future.

When I will I hear?

We will be emailing our customers in around 2-3 weeks from the date of this email with a unique code and a link to a specially created Kobo registration page – You will need to click the link in that email where you will be able to transfer your blinkbox Books library to Kobo.

How will I read my ebooks in the future?

You will be able to install the free Kobo reading app on your current device (IOS and Android devices, including hudl2). We will of course be communicating the timeline for the transition as talks with Kobo continue.

You will be able to read your ebooks in the blinkbox Books app until we notify you that you need to move your account to Kobo.

About Kobo

Kobo offers a comprehensive digital reading ecosystem, which includes a catalogue of more than 4 million eBooks, top-ranking eReading apps, and award-winning devices.


Where can I get more information?

We’ve created a Frequently Asked Questions page on our help site.

If you have any questions, or need any help in the meantime, get in touch with our Support team here.

Thank you for reading with blinkbox Books and also for your patience during the transition.

The blinkbox Books team

[darryl]

Full marks to Tesco so far. We see so many examples of large businesses doing the wrong thing that many of us, in my view correctly, always expect the worst and prepare for it if possible. A pleasant surprise. So far. Let's hope it all works out.

[HarryT]

Originally Posted by darryl

Full marks to Tesco so far. We see so many examples of large businesses doing the wrong thing that many of us, in my view correctly, always expect the worst and prepare for it if possible. A pleasant surprise. So far. Let's hope it all works out.

Full marks to them for providing a solution for this, but I hope it works out better than the transition from FW to B&N did. That was... not exactly a smooth customer experience.

[MikeB1972]

Originally Posted by HarryT

Full marks to them for providing a solution for this, but I hope it works out better than the transition from FW to B&N did. That was... not exactly a smooth customer experience.

Well, Smiths to Kobo and Sony to Kobo were both fairly painless, so I'd expect this to go as well as those two.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by MikeB1972

Well, Smiths to Kobo and Sony to Kobo were both fairly painless, so I'd expect this to go as well as those two.

Wasn't Kobo already handling the backend for Smiths?

The Sony transfer is a better parallel. Should be smoother since Tesco hardware was more or less generic Android and all that should be needed is to install the Kobo app and log in.

(Though I fear it might not. I just hope they don't follow the B&N example of making people "ask" for the transfers via web.)