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Old Yesterday, 07:02 PM   #1
jhowell
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Amazon to allow downloads of DRM free books
From Digital Rights Management on Amazon KDP:

Quote:
Effective January 20, 2026, verified purchasers can download the EPUB and PDF files of your confirmed DRM-free books.

Digital Rights Management (DRM) is a technology you can apply when publishing your eBook that affects how readers can access their purchased content.
…
Applying DRM limits reader access to Kindle apps and devices only. DRM technology is designed to limit unauthorized access to or copying of digital content files.

Choosing not to apply DRM (DRM-free) gives readers additional flexibility to enjoy their purchased content across a wider range of devices and applications by providing downloadable EPUB and PDF files. Your royalty rates and payment structure remain unchanged regardless of your DRM selection.
…
Reader download access

Effective January 20, 2026, readers can download EPUB and PDF files of your DRM-free books from their Manage Your Content and Devices page on Amazon. Only verified purchasers who have bought your book can access the EPUB/PDF files. Customers who borrowed your books through Kindle Unlimited or other services can't download the EPUB/PDF files, even if the books are DRM-free.

If readers downloaded EPUB/PDF files when your book was DRM-free, they will retain access to those downloaded EPUB/PDF files even if you later apply DRM. However, the option to download EPUB/PDF files will not be available after your DRM setting change is live (approx. 24-72 hours after you publish).
Last edited by jhowell; Yesterday at 09:39 PM. Reason: Added more details
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Old Yesterday, 07:21 PM   #2
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Originally Posted by jhowell View Post
From Digital Rights Management on Amazon KDP:
Why would Amazon allow downloads of DRM free eBooks to be in ePub?
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Old Yesterday, 07:21 PM   #3
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So unless or until Big N publishers have the same option KDP customers and their readers will have at least one advantage over Big N publishers and their readers.

I'm confident they can have it if they want it.

I wonder if this is a way for amazon to dip their feet into EPUB distribution without losing face.

I also wonder whether amazon will degrade the quality of the EPUB illustrations or leave the EPUBs as submitted.
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Old Yesterday, 07:48 PM   #4
jhowell
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JSWolf View Post
Why would Amazon allow downloads of DRM free eBooks to be in ePub?
Because that is the format that all other e-book platforms use. (A surprisingly good thing coming from Amazon.)
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Old Yesterday, 09:12 PM   #5
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Originally Posted by jhowell View Post
Because that is the format that all other e-book platforms use. (A surprisingly good thing coming from Amazon.)
It will be interesting to see what quality of formatting will be, considering that publisher is generally not submitting ePub or PDF directly, and Amazon will have to do it themselves. Maybe by using KFX Output plugin.

I have found PDF's available for ebooks from Google Play can be pretty mediocre, there are no ToC entries, links, page numbers etc. The ePub can be polluted with markup Google puts in (to switch between reflow and fixed I guess).

Am curious if we'll also see this download option show up for the likes Tor etc.
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Old Yesterday, 09:43 PM   #6
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I added some additional details to the first post of this thread.

The main things are that borrowed books cannot be downloaded and the publisher can choose to add or remove DRM, along with the ability to download, at any time. So if you purchase a downloadable book it would be best to download it asap.
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Old Yesterday, 09:51 PM   #7
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Yay, an easy way to see whether or not my books are supposed to be drm-free! I'll just have to make sure to download the EPUB version, since it doesn't sound like my prior AZW3 downloads would count toward retaining access to the drm-free version.
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Old Yesterday, 11:17 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tomsem View Post
It will be interesting to see what quality of formatting will be, considering that publisher is generally not submitting ePub or PDF directly, and Amazon will have to do it themselves. Maybe by using KFX Output plugin.
Actually, Amazon's Kindle Create application has the ability to generate EPUBs from their proprietary KPF format for reflowable books. That conversion output is probably what Amazon will allow customers to download. (Personally I feel the my KFX Input plugin produces a much better EPUB than Amazon's software does, but I am of course biased.)

----

It is interesting that Amazon is taking this step now after their ongoing efforts at locking down Kindle DRM and removing the Download & Transfer feature from Kindle owners. They even apply DRM to books that the publisher has requested to be DRM free when delivered in KFX format.

My guess is that they have seen a noticeable drop in sales. Their attempts at forcing lock-in may have resulted in former customers obtaining their books elsewhere.
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Old Yesterday, 11:21 PM   #9
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I'm going to have to try this in January though it appears that authors already have this option to enable this feature.
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Old Today, 02:35 AM   #10
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Can or Does this apply to older titles?
I have read the drm management you linked to. It is not clear to me if this choice can be applied to older books?

For example, there's an author I've been following (and buying almost everything she wrote) for years. this year I haven't bought anything new, since I was unable to get it dedrmed with my current setup. *If* the author wants to, can she go through her older stuff (published when doing so without drm was not allowed) and trigger this "No DRM" condition? Or is it only allowed for things newly published?

Given it's Amazon, she'd probably have to go through each individual book instead of a block change, but that is still possible.
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Old Today, 05:46 AM   #11
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Does this suggest that another kindle update is likely so that the epub can be read on a kindle/app?
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Old Today, 06:54 AM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Martinoptic View Post
Does this suggest that another kindle update is likely so that the epub can be read on a kindle/app?
I don't think so. Epub downloads are probably meant for those who want to read on a non-kindle device or make a personal backup. Amazon surely assumes that you read books directly downloaded from their server on your Kindle.

But then, I don't know, of course.
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Old Today, 09:14 AM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Darqref View Post
I have read the drm management you linked to. It is not clear to me if this choice can be applied to older books?
From that page:

Quote:
Note: For books you published prior to December 9, 2025 where you did not apply DRM, Amazon will not automatically provide the EPUB/PDF download option to readers. You must explicitly confirm this choice by following the steps below.
So it can be done, but only on a book-by-book basis. If the publisher takes no action then previously published books will not be downloadable.
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Old Today, 09:19 AM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by jhowell View Post
Because that is the format that all other e-book platforms use. (A surprisingly good thing coming from Amazon.)
Also usually how the ebooks are uploaded. So if DRM free then Amazon only needs to offer the upload. They now only offer KFX for reflowable ebooks on newer ereaders, which unlike AZW3, always has DRM.
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Old Today, 09:20 AM   #15
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Does this suggest that another kindle update is likely so that the epub can be read on a kindle/app?
I doubt it.
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