Kobo Discounts: Coupon Codes + Discussion

[yuatyi]

Kobobooks coupon code for 50% off - NOVEND50 (valid till 18 Nov 2013)

[Lynx-lynx]

Originally Posted by Billingsgate

Hm. I tried Tunnelbear, and it works, but that wasn't enough. I also had to set up a whole new Kobo account with a USA address. Then, finally, the book showed up. BUT...when I went to purchase it, the screen that says "Have a promo code?" flashed on for a millisecond and disappeared. So I assume the promo code is not applicable.

I'm just going to order the hardcover sent to me from Book Depository. Slightly higher cost than the full-price e-book, and I have a book I can fondle.

Thanks for the help, all!

Billingsgate the voucher box flashes up for a second or so if you don't have your credit card/paypal details already in situ.

Fill those details out and press enter and then the voucher box will come up and you can proceed from that point.

[Terisa de morgan]

Originally Posted by mycurlylocks

I tried to buy that book two weeks ago. There wasn't an Adobe download link then either. So much for customer service, apparently Kobo didn't report it to Midnight Ink.

I notified Kobo customer service and they refunded my money.

Same here. I tried to download the preview yesterday and it looked like images, not pages.

[murg]

Originally Posted by murg

Help! How do I get the old checkout screen?

I've tried IE9 and also changing my region to Norfolk Island (even creating a Norfolk Island account).

I managed to use the 80% coupon by buying the book in HongKong.

[JoHunt]

Originally Posted by Chapter One

Usually when a book is not available to my region, it doesnt show up in searches, but usually using a VPN can find it but not this time.

Kobo does not IP check (it's not even sophisticated enough to stop single use codes from being used over and over ) so a VPN is not necessary.

The books that appear available to you are dependent on the country of your billing address. You just have to "move" to a new country to find what you're looking for.

[Billingsgate]

Originally Posted by joehunt

Kobo does not IP check (it's not even sophisticated enough to stop single use codes from being used over and over ) so a VPN is not necessary.

The books that appear available to you are dependent on the country of your billing address. You just have to "move" to a new country to find what you're looking for.

I thought so too, but it isn't true. They absolutely check the IP. Case in point:

I'm in Hong Kong. Today I set up a second Kobo account with a genuine US billing address and a US credit card. I logged in, tried to access THE GOLDFINCH by Donna Tartt, and received the same "Not available in your country" screen as I do with my Hong Kong account.

Then I installed one of the recommended VPN servers, set it to make it appear I'm in the US. Now the above book is available.

Tried again without the VPN hiding my IP. Back to unavailable. Clearly they're now tracking IP addresses.

[JoHunt]

I routinely buy from all Kobo stores using the same non-US IP and have never gotten a "not available in your country message".

The Goldfinch ebook is available for sale outside of the US (even to South Africa), so I'm not sure why it's not showing up in your country.

[melmac]

Originally Posted by Billingsgate

Tried again without the VPN hiding my IP. Back to unavailable. Clearly they're now tracking IP addresses.

It was only a matter of time, what with all the geo jumping that is going on They may be testing it out in the HK store before expanding it sitewide. Personally I use separate emails/pword for each location seems more logical to me. BTW the Hong Kong store is awesome I just used it for the first time and it allowed me to use a Coupon on 2 books that the Us, UK, Aud store had rejected on.

[Nightyume]

Originally Posted by Terisa de morgan

Same here. I tried to download the preview yesterday and it looked like images, not pages.

In that case it's most likely only for the phone/tablet app.

[Kiya]

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[corroonb]

AFS50 is a multi-use code. I've already used it 8 times. I'm based in Ireland so it may not work this way everywhere.

This should save people some effort if they're spending a long time trying to get some decent codes from the latest contest.

[bookmarked]

Originally Posted by Lynx-lynx

I had this happen with a book I bought using the Firefox browser - I could only find it in My Library using IE9, even though I didn't use IE9 to buy it.

Edit

Also did you check in My Library - Purchased?

I've had a book appear there but not in the I'm Reading tab.

In my case, the book ("Absolute OpenBSD, 2nd Edition, Unix for the Practical Paranoid" ISBN:9781593275235) shows up in My Library both under I'm Reading and Purchased. It also doesn't even appear in the Kobo Desktop (Windows) app, in spite of saying "READ THIS ON DESKTOP, eREADERS, ANDROID, IOS, TABLETS" on the product page.

I got a reply from Kobo:
"We have checked your eBook and we would like to inform you that this one is only compatible with Kobo eReader and Kobo apps. If you have a Kobo eReader, a Tablet or an Apple device, you can download the Kobo app and read your eBook. On the other hand, if you do not have any these we can issue a store credit for the eBook."

Now this ebook is from a publisher (No Starch Press) that only sells DRM-free ebooks. Making it only available in a proprietary format may not strictly be DRM, but it has the same effect.

To top it all off, they're only offering me a store credit, rather than a refund.

For now, I sent an email to No Starch letting them know that Kobo is selling one of their books in a proprietary format. If they don't push Kobo to do the right thing, then I guess I'll try demanding a refund, since I can't read the book using the Desktop app, even though it says I can on the product page.

[Lush]

Originally Posted by yuatyi

Kobobooks coupon code for 50% off - NOVEND50 (valid till 18 Nov 2013)

I've just managed to purchase a book published by Penguin with this code on Aus Kobo. It's very rare to be able to apply a code to anything outside the limited range Kobo Aus lists as couponable.

[Nightyume]

Well, I tried to use the 80Nvbr and it applied the discount, the checkout said I would be paying 12 dollars and change. Once I pressed the "buy now" button it said congratulations, they had successfully charged me $62.96

Supposedly they are going to give me a refund but it's still in my library and isn't showing up as "locked" or anything of the sort. I am slightly freaking out.

Also, the new "95comic" code for 95% off comics, doesn't work for me. It says it has already been redeemed even though I have only ever bought one comic from them and that was a year ago.

[Lynx-lynx]

Originally Posted by bookmarked

shows up in My Library both under I'm Reading and Purchased. It also doesn't even appear in the Kobo Desktop (Windows) app, in spite of saying "READ THIS ON DESKTOP, eREADERS, ANDROID, IOS, TABLETS" on the product page.

I got a reply from Kobo:
"We have checked your eBook and we would like to inform you that this one is only compatible with Kobo eReader and Kobo apps. If you have a Kobo eReader, a Tablet or an Apple device, you can download the Kobo app and read your eBook. On the other hand, if you do not have any these we can issue a store credit for the eBook."

Now this ebook is from a publisher (No Starch Press) that only sells DRM-free ebooks. Making it only available in a proprietary format may not strictly be DRM, but it has the same effect.

To top it all off, they're only offering me a store credit, rather than a refund.

For now, I sent an email to No Starch letting them know that Kobo is selling one of their books in a proprietary format. If they don't push Kobo to do the right thing, then I guess I'll try demanding a refund, since I can't read the book using the Desktop app, even though it says I can on the product page.

Bookmarked I've bought an O'Reilly DRM free book that I couldn't find, although the book was in My library and Purchases.

It turns out that the book was a kepub (which I never buy) instead of an Epub.

You can easily change a non DRM kepub to an Epub. In the spoiler box are the directions how (they're too long for this thread and it's off topic). There's also a link to the thread I started on it in the Kobo devices sub-forum.

Kobo gave me a credit only also - but as I'd converted the book to Epub (and put into Calibre) I just asked them to notify when the Epub version would be available and give me that. That was way too hard for them to do and they told me that I would need to keep checking the site!!

Let me know how you go.

Spoiler:

Okay, I've just cracked it, thanks everyone

This is what I did - and now I have the formerly kepub only ebook as an epub in Calibre:

1. As Peter advised above, I went to the following folder/file on my PC:

C:\Users\user_name\AppData\Local\Kobo\Kobo Desktop Edition\kepub

2. In that folder I noticed that all the kepubs had the same file date modified, today's date, which is, I assume, because Kobo Desktop re-loads them each time it's opened.

3. So I started with the first and last files and renamed them .epub. That is, I just added the extension .epub onto the end of the existing file.

4. Then I imported the files, one at a time, into my Sony Reader for PC which is my pre Calibre library for all epub books.

5. My book wasn't the first book, it was the last book - which I guessed means that the last book showing on that file listing is the most recenlty purchased.

6. I opened the book in Sony REader for PC and it was operating sort of slowly - but working and looking like it totally should look. Yippee

7. I imported the now epub book into Calibre, where Alf did it's thing, and opened it. It works perfectly

Yipppeeee ......

How do I get a kepub out of Kobo Desktop