The Power of Kindle Unlimited

[John F]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

...

I don't like Amazon forcing exclusivity on small time authors with no power. But people deciding they already pay for a subscription service and therefor don't want to buy other books... Hey, you can't have everything.

Is the "forcing exclusivity" part (on small time authors) an urban myth? I looked at smashwords, and there was at least one author (I stopped looking after I found one) that was in KU AND smashwords.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by John F

Is the "forcing exclusivity" part (on small time authors) an urban myth? I looked at smashwords, and there was at least one author (I stopped looking after I found one) that was in KU AND smashwords.

As a wise man once said:

Originally Posted by John F

Tough to say with a sample size of one?

[John F]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

As a wise man once said:

You keep repeating the "forces" thing. You don't care to verify that it is true?

How many examples would one need to find before you would think they weren't "forced"?

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by John F

You keep repeating the "forces" thing. You don't care to verify that it is true?

How many examples would one need to find before you would think they weren't "forced"?

Kindle Direct Publishing’s Terms of Service

1 Exclusivity. When you include a Digital Book in KDP Select, you give us the exclusive right to sell and distribute your Digital Book in digital format while your book is in KDP Select. During this period of exclusivity, you cannot sell or distribute, or give anyone else the right to sell or distribute, your Digital Book (or a book that is substantially similar), in digital format in any territory where you have rights.

Your counter example, Dana Stabenow, is published by Head of Zeus publishing. That publisher obviously has a better deal with Amazon than the indie authors we're talking about. J. K. Rowling does too.

And, back to my point: I just think Amazon should re-examine the exclusivity necessary to be enrolled in KU. KU seems to be successful enough that allowing authors to list their books for sale everywhere would not impact Kindle Unlimited, as that is a different thing. That is all I am talking about here.

You say you are not interested in my argument, but then you keep replying to me focusing on small parts. Not sure what your point is.

[John F]

Originally Posted by ZodWallop

Kindle Direct Publishing’s Terms of Service



Your counter example, Dana Stabenow, is published by Head of Zeus publishing. That publisher obviously has a better deal with Amazon than the indie authors we're talking about. J. K. Rowling does too.

And, back to my point: I just think Amazon should re-examine the exclusivity necessary to be enrolled in KU. KU seems to be successful enough that allowing authors to list their books for sale everywhere would not impact Kindle Unlimited, as that is a different thing. That is all I am talking about here.

You say you are not interested in my argument, but then you keep replying to me focusing on small parts. Not sure what your point is.

I keep replying, because you seem to keep spreading misinformation. You keep saying things like "force" and "exclusivity necessary to be enrolled in KU", and I don't think that is accurate.

Dana Stabenow isn't on smashwords (as far as I know). As far as J.K. Rowlings, it looks like (some) of the Harry potter books are exclusive to Amazon (at least they are not on Kobo).

I believe that any small/indie author can publish on smashwords, from there they can get into KU, and it is up to the author as to whether they want to be in KU exclusively/Select or not.

And here is a book (by I assume a "small" author) that is in KU and available on other sites:

https://www.amazon.com/Inner-City-Sc.../dp/B0058I6OFO
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/inner-city
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/47733

It did take me a while to find the above book.

Feel free to say you don't like exclusivity in KU, but saying it is "forced" seems like you are drinking the coolaid.

[DNSB]

I do cleanup/formatting for a few local authors. A couple of them have gone with KU for some of their books and, yes, they have to be only available through Amazon for those books while they are available through KU. KU does not require that all books by an author be available in KU.

Larger publishers seem to be able to have better deals with Amazon but I am talking about indie authors whose leverage is non-existent.

And note that your example was published in 2011 and is probably grandfathered from before the current KDP rules were in effect. Can you find an example for a book published in, say, 2021?

You might want to read What to Do if Amazon Shuts Down Your KDP Account and pay special attention to the item titled 5. Enrolling Books in KU that Are Available Wide. One of the authors I've worked with ran into the issue where one of her books was pirated and Amazon suspended her account and she spent quite a bit of time convincing them that this should not affect her account.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by John F

Feel free to say you don't like exclusivity in KU, but saying it is "forced" seems like you are drinking the coolaid.

This is tiresome. You are wrong. Nobody else is agreeing with you. You found a book where the author is ignoring the rules or has some exception. Bully for you. You are still wrong.

If you are an indie author and want your book to be included in Kindle Unlimited, that book must be made exclusively available (for purchase or stream) on Amazon.

If you choose to sell a book at B&N, Kobo, Apple, etc, it cannot be added to Kindle Unlimited.

These are the terms of service.

[John F]

Originally Posted by DNSB

I do cleanup/formatting for a few local authors. A couple of them have gone with KU for some of their books and, yes, they have to be only available through Amazon for those books while they are available through KU. KU does not require that all books by an author be available in KU.

Larger publishers seem to be able to have better deals with Amazon but I am talking about indie authors whose leverage is non-existent.

And note that your example was published in 2011 and is probably grandfathered from before the current KDP rules were in effect. Can you find an example for a book published in, say, 2021?

You might want to read What to Do if Amazon Shuts Down Your KDP Account and pay special attention to the item titled 5. Enrolling Books in KU that Are Available Wide. One of the authors I've worked with ran into the issue where one of her books was pirated and Amazon suspended her account and she spent quite a bit of time convincing them that this should not affect her account.

https://www.amazon.com/Famously-Lost.../dp/B08Y89H8FX
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1073099

And I may very well be wrong about the small authors being able to be in KU and still be available outside of Amazon. It just seems to me that the wording is rather vague. I think I believe now that the only way for a "small" author's ebook to get into KU is through Select, and to be in Select, it must be exclusive.

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by John F

It just seems to me that the wording is rather vague.

But you already know that amazon tends to be vague and misleading.

[darryl]

From memory an author can opt-out of KU every 90 days. Contrast this with the rights grab by traditional publishing. Good luck to any author wanting the rights to their books back now. I also don't like exclusivity requirements in KU or elsewhere for that matter. But on the scale of individual authors it is a minor evil, particularly when it lasts only 90 days if they so choose. At a more "macro" level it gives Amazon a huge advantage in the whole Indic e-book market. This is why Kobo faces an uphill bettle with both its self-publishing and subscription models, though I wish it well and would love to see more competion.

So far as Amazon giving up exclusivity? I'd say only if they are forced to do so. What rational author would leave a title only in KU if they can publish elsewhere at the same time with no disadvantage. Without exclusivity Kobo would, I expect, be able to offer a broadly similar number of books to KU/KDP. And Amazon has a point. Where were Kobo and others now seeking to compete when Amazon was pioneering self-publishing and then subscription services of this type? If authors are not satisfied, they can walk.

Going wide is very much a decision for an individual authors. I have read of a number of authors who have experimented with going wide only to find that their Amazon sales were still more that their sales from all other channels combined. On the other hand KKR points out very rationally that it may take some time to build a market on each other platform. She also recommends going wide in at least the long term, both because of the "all your eggs in one basket" problem generally, and because proposed laws in the US targetting the large tech firms including Amazon nay have very adverse affects.

The Amazon is evil rhetoric is no more accurate than Amazon is perfect. The truth as usual is somewhere in between. Personally I fail to see any terrible evil in a rolling 90 day period of exclusivity.

[ZodWallop]

Originally Posted by darryl

I'd say only if they are forced to do so. What rational author would leave a title only in KU if they can publish elsewhere at the same time with no disadvantage.

To give a real example, I just finished watching the Martin Scorsese movie Hugo. Prime Video has it for rent for $3 (as does Google Play, YouTube, Vudu, Microsoft, Redbox and Apple). HBO Max has it for 'free' streaming. So Amazon having the same movie 'for sale' is not going to tempt me to cancel my HBO Max subscription. The post that started this even mentioned Amazon having sequel books for sale were not enough to pull him out of KU.

By the same token, Kobo having the Frank Zafiro books I mentioned earlier for sale would not cause KU subscribers to cancel their service.

I did note: I could see Amazon demanding that a KU book cannot be in a competitor's streaming service. So no KU and Kobo plus simultaneously.

And in general, ereaders are far more locked in. My TV can show me HBO, Prime Video, Hulu, etc. The average Kobo user cannot get books from Kindle Unlimited and Kindle owners cannot get books from Kobo.

Where were Kobo and others now seeking to compete when Amazon was pioneering self-publishing and then subscription services of this type?

Barnes and Noble are huge self-publishers. Most of the books at the discount tables are B&N self published books.

Weren't Scribd and Oyster around before KU? Granted, Amazon was the first with the pockets and the number of customers to make it work.

For what it's worth, I can understand why authors go for KU. It seems to have been a book for many. Multiple reports say authors make about the same or more on KU vs. going wide.

But I do think things like Amazon forcing exclusivity on indy authors to participate in KU will be ammunition in an eventual monopoly case against them. And, as mentioned, I really don't think exclusivity is netting them much.