whispernet surcharge for global kindles, no way around it?

wdreamsmaycome · 07-14-2010, 06:46 PM

I don't think the Amazon help folks understood my question, but hopefully people here know what I'm talking about: for global kindles when you buy on the Amazon store as far as I know you pay $2 extra per e-book for the 'wireless delivery' (which can add up pretty quickly).

Is there any way anywhere to say 'do not charge me these $2, I will d/load on my pc and sync over usb'? I am totally fine if this is a convenience charge where people wanting to use whispernet will pay it, I am not so fine if this is a 'tax' that one has to pay whether one uses whispernet or not.

I am very much on the fence between Kobo and Kindle and this is definitely one of the differentiators between the two (no extra surcharges in the Kobo store). Of course I could just buy a kindle and buy everything in kobo and read it on the kindle, but it seems a hassle in this world of e-babel walled gardens.

abookreader · 07-14-2010, 08:41 PM

What country are you downloading from?

Pushka · 07-14-2010, 08:43 PM

I looked at the kobo yesterday funnily enough and didnt like it much; and the Borders ebook store is very hard to search in. Maybe you could live in the USA for a while hey?

SensualPoet · 07-14-2010, 09:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wdreamsmaycome

Is there any way anywhere to say 'do not charge me these $2, I will d/load on my pc and sync over usb'?

No.

However, and I can only speak for Canada and someone who actually have a Kindle 2i and a Kobo ... Amazon is slowly rolling back the Whispernet charge. It no longer applies to anything offer for free; it is not always applied to lower priced items (Identity Crisis by Debbie Mack was $4.99 and is now $2.99 because the delivery charge is gone); and sometimes the charge appears to be some fraction of Whispernet. It's always built in so this is speculation.

It used to be many titles at Kobo in Canada vs Amazon Kindle were around $2 difference ... now that gap is sometimes closed or close to closed.

Actually, I don't have a problem with a "delivery fee" so long as it is reasonable and transparent -- like 15¢/MB, the charge for personal docs converted. War and Peace would be more than a pulp fiction; but it would still be modest vs the price of whatever was purchased.

If the same title is available at about the same price for Kobo or Kindle, I'll buy the Kindle so I have the opportunity to directly participate in the online community -- even if I probably won't. But I see no reason to spend $6.99 for an Agatha Christie at Amazon when the same title is $4.99 at Kobo.

wdreamsmaycome · 07-14-2010, 09:33 PM

I live (and would be d/loading) from Canada, interesting that the whispernet charge is being rolled back, the thing is though that looking at the kindle store it is really unclear where it is and where it isn't if you don't compare the prices to Kobo etc.

I would be fine paying a (small, like you said 15c/MB) delivery fee for whispernet, but $2 is way way way too much.

tekane · 07-14-2010, 09:59 PM

I am in Canada with a DX and have never been charged to downloading on whispernet.

Pushka · 07-15-2010, 01:45 AM

Have you checked the price on the Canadian book versus the price on the US site? In Australia, they are all $2 dearer.

Kumabjorn · 07-15-2010, 02:42 AM

This obviously calls for a Pricerunner.com site geared towards e-books. Where to get a certain title for the least amount. Considering the outlets today it ought to be cinch for an accomplished programmer.

mgmueller · 07-15-2010, 03:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wdreamsmaycome

I don't think the Amazon help folks understood my question, but hopefully people here know what I'm talking about: for global kindles when you buy on the Amazon store as far as I know you pay $2 extra per e-book for the 'wireless delivery' (which can add up pretty quickly).

Is there any way anywhere to say 'do not charge me these $2, I will d/load on my pc and sync over usb'? I am totally fine if this is a convenience charge where people wanting to use whispernet will pay it, I am not so fine if this is a 'tax' that one has to pay whether one uses whispernet or not.

I am very much on the fence between Kobo and Kindle and this is definitely one of the differentiators between the two (no extra surcharges in the Kobo store). Of course I could just buy a kindle and buy everything in kobo and read it on the kindle, but it seems a hassle in this world of e-babel walled gardens.

Quotes from "Important Reminder About International Delivery Fees" on my Kindle DX Graphite:
"Due to internationals costs, additional fees apply....
- For subscriptions...a weekly fee of $4.99. If you have subscriptions, you will receive more details...in a separate letter on your Kindle when you travel outside the U.S.
- For personal documents...while outside the U.S., the fee is $.99 per megabyte...
There is no charge for wirelessly receiving books, receiving single periodical issues, browsing the Kindle store, or using the experimental web browser while traveling internationally."

HarryT · 07-15-2010, 03:44 AM

The $2 fee was absolished a couple of months ago in the UK. It is slowly being removed - presumably as Amazon do deals with local telecoms operators.

AnemicOak · 07-15-2010, 10:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kumabjorn

This obviously calls for a Pricerunner.com site geared towards e-books. Where to get a certain title for the least amount. Considering the outlets today it ought to be cinch for an accomplished programmer.

There are plenty of those sites out there, but I don't know of one that will search the same vendor for price variations by country.

wdreamsmaycome · 07-15-2010, 03:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgmueller

There is no charge for wirelessly receiving books, receiving single periodical issues, browsing the Kindle store, or using the experimental web browser while traveling internationally."

was this charge 'removed' or 'hidden' though? I know the site doesn't say anything, but I remember clearly that titles for Canada Kindles used to be $2 higher than titles for US Kindles, this was why I asked the original question.

Pushka · 07-15-2010, 07:55 PM

The charge was removed. Prior to that, US based people who bought books while travelling OS were charged an extra $2. In Australia, it is a hidden charge; Amazon still say whispernet is free. But books cost two dollar more. Putting in on to the price of the book before it is purchased, does not make it free.

Kumabjorn · 07-16-2010, 12:50 AM

Compared with the charge for sending converted documents, isn't it a bit pricey? Few books are larger than 0.5 MB.

drl · 07-16-2010, 08:44 AM

Don't forget that with ebooks you are often paying sales tax on overseas purchases. If I understand correctly, ebooks are considered "software" in the EU and VAT applies, but paper books are exempt.

07-14-2010, 06:46 PM	#1
wdreamsmaycome Member Posts: 16 Karma: 62 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: kindle 3, ipod touch 1st gen	whispernet surcharge for global kindles, no way around it? I don't think the Amazon help folks understood my question, but hopefully people here know what I'm talking about: for global kindles when you buy on the Amazon store as far as I know you pay $2 extra per e-book for the 'wireless delivery' (which can add up pretty quickly). Is there any way anywhere to say 'do not charge me these $2, I will d/load on my pc and sync over usb'? I am totally fine if this is a convenience charge where people wanting to use whispernet will pay it, I am not so fine if this is a 'tax' that one has to pay whether one uses whispernet or not. I am very much on the fence between Kobo and Kindle and this is definitely one of the differentiators between the two (no extra surcharges in the Kobo store). Of course I could just buy a kindle and buy everything in kobo and read it on the kindle, but it seems a hassle in this world of e-babel walled gardens.

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07-14-2010, 08:41 PM	#2
abookreader Wizard Posts: 1,516 Karma: 2567610 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindles - Keyboard, Fire, 2-US, iPhone, iPAD	What country are you downloading from?

07-14-2010, 08:43 PM	#3
Pushka Wizard Posts: 1,119 Karma: 1019140 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Australia Device: kindle, Ipad, Iphone, Nexus and PPW	I looked at the kobo yesterday funnily enough and didnt like it much; and the Borders ebook store is very hard to search in. Maybe you could live in the USA for a while hey?

07-14-2010, 09:33 PM	#5
wdreamsmaycome Member Posts: 16 Karma: 62 Join Date: Feb 2010 Device: kindle 3, ipod touch 1st gen	I live (and would be d/loading) from Canada, interesting that the whispernet charge is being rolled back, the thing is though that looking at the kindle store it is really unclear where it is and where it isn't if you don't compare the prices to Kobo etc. I would be fine paying a (small, like you said 15c/MB) delivery fee for whispernet, but $2 is way way way too much.

07-14-2010, 09:59 PM	#6
tekane Junior Member Posts: 1 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2010 Device: Kindle DX	I am in Canada with a DX and have never been charged to downloading on whispernet.

07-15-2010, 01:45 AM	#7
Pushka Wizard Posts: 1,119 Karma: 1019140 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Australia Device: kindle, Ipad, Iphone, Nexus and PPW	Have you checked the price on the Canadian book versus the price on the US site? In Australia, they are all $2 dearer.

07-15-2010, 02:42 AM	#8
Kumabjorn Basculocolpic Posts: 4,356 Karma: 20181319 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Sweden Device: Kindle 3 WiFi, Kindle 4SO, Kindle for Android, Sony PRS-350 and PRS-T1	This obviously calls for a Pricerunner.com site geared towards e-books. Where to get a certain title for the least amount. Considering the outlets today it ought to be cinch for an accomplished programmer.

07-15-2010, 03:44 AM	#10
HarryT eBook Enthusiast Posts: 85,560 Karma: 93980341 Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: UK Device: Kindle Oasis 2, iPad Pro 10.5", iPhone 6	The $2 fee was absolished a couple of months ago in the UK. It is slowly being removed - presumably as Amazon do deals with local telecoms operators.

07-15-2010, 07:55 PM	#13
Pushka Wizard Posts: 1,119 Karma: 1019140 Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Australia Device: kindle, Ipad, Iphone, Nexus and PPW	The charge was removed. Prior to that, US based people who bought books while travelling OS were charged an extra $2. In Australia, it is a hidden charge; Amazon still say whispernet is free. But books cost two dollar more. Putting in on to the price of the book before it is purchased, does not make it free.

07-16-2010, 12:50 AM	#14
Kumabjorn Basculocolpic Posts: 4,356 Karma: 20181319 Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Sweden Device: Kindle 3 WiFi, Kindle 4SO, Kindle for Android, Sony PRS-350 and PRS-T1	Compared with the charge for sending converted documents, isn't it a bit pricey? Few books are larger than 0.5 MB.

07-16-2010, 08:44 AM	#15
drl Member Posts: 21 Karma: 12 Join Date: May 2008 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Device: Irex DR800	Don't forget that with ebooks you are often paying sales tax on overseas purchases. If I understand correctly, ebooks are considered "software" in the EU and VAT applies, but paper books are exempt.