Is there any way to buy an international kindle book? - Page 2

Pushka · 01-20-2011, 11:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lenuam

Hello everyone,

there's a book I'd really like to get, but I live in Germany and the book's only available in the US Store.

What would you suggest to do? Is it in any sense illegal to add an address located in the US? What kind of consequences may I have to cope with?

Thanks!

It is against Amazon's Terms of Service. Up to you really. If you were in the USA you could buy the book; you can probably get the Paper book shipped to you in Germany from theUS Amazon store, so it is an ebook rights thing.

lenuam · 01-21-2011, 05:29 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pushka

It is against Amazon's Terms of Service. Up to you really. If you were in the USA you could buy the book; you can probably get the Paper book shipped to you in Germany from theUS Amazon store, so it is an ebook rights thing.

Thanks for the answer. What possible consequences might I have to face? I'm not too eager to find out, actually, guess I'll have to look for the book elsewhere.

What alternative eBook Stores on the net would you recommend to Kindle owners who can't find what they're looking for at Amazon?

I haven't found such a list of eBook Stores which work just fine with the Kindle yet, so I wonder if there is one.

abookreader · 01-21-2011, 06:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lenuam

Thanks for the answer. What possible consequences might I have to face? I'm not too eager to find out, actually, guess I'll have to look for the book elsewhere.

What alternative eBook Stores on the net would you recommend to Kindle owners who can't find what they're looking for at Amazon?

I haven't found such a list of eBook Stores which work just fine with the Kindle yet, so I wonder if there is one.

none really.

Sometimes people get an email saying their accounts have been prevented from buying Kindle books from that country until documentation is submitted. They either change their addresses back or submit the documentation and life goes on.

Starko · 01-21-2011, 02:06 PM

There are no noticeable consequences.
If there is no "legal" way to get a book because of some complicated copyright deals or lack of them, one might ask himself "which of the two felonies should i commit - falsify address or download pirated copy off the net?"
Since in some countries downloading books from P2P or torrents is not considered breaking law, downloading a free copy from the net is legally and ethically more correct than lying to Amazon?

Here is another interesting question: I can ask a US based friend of mine to buy a printed book for me in the States and mail it to me. Of course i will cover all his expenses. All perfectly legal. Now, what if i pay him to buy a Kindle edition for me?

DMB · 01-21-2011, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Starko

There are no noticeable consequences.
If there is no "legal" way to get a book because of some complicated copyright deals or lack of them, one might ask himself "which of the two felonies should i commit - falsify address or download pirated copy off the net?"
Since in some countries downloading books from P2P or torrents is not considered breaking law, downloading a free copy from the net is legally and ethically more correct than lying to Amazon?

Here is another interesting question: I can ask a US based friend of mine to buy a printed book for me in the States and mail it to me. Of course i will cover all his expenses. All perfectly legal. Now, what if i pay him to buy a Kindle edition for me?

How do you then transfer it?

abookreader · 01-21-2011, 03:30 PM

The only people who have to worry about transferring from website to website are those who switch back and forth from amazon.co.uk and amazon.com. As of right now UK buyers can buy from amazon.co.uk, but they don't have to. They can happily remain at amazon.com and buy in US Dollars if they choose.

Everybody else in the Amazon-verse buys their eBooks from Amazon.com

You just log in to Amazon.com and go to the Manage Your Kindle website and put in your address. You can choose to use a VPN server and pay by gift card to appear more authentic, or not. If you are going to buy a book or two I personally wouldn't bother. If it is going to be SOP for you then I'd try to limit the number of books purchased at once and use the "hide me" methods.

After you buy, change your address back and your books are still in the Kindle archives.

Whether or not this is illegal I have no idea, consult your conscious and your lawyer I guess. It probably is against the Amazon TOS somewhere but they are really so vague as to what somebody's "address" might be that I don't know that either.

Paulinafrica · 01-22-2011, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Starko

There are no noticeable consequences.
If there is no "legal" way to get a book because of some complicated copyright deals or lack of them, one might ask himself "which of the two felonies should i commit - falsify address or download pirated copy off the net?"
Since in some countries downloading books from P2P or torrents is not considered breaking law, downloading a free copy from the net is legally and ethically more correct than lying to Amazon?

Here is another interesting question: I can ask a US based friend of mine to buy a printed book for me in the States and mail it to me. Of course i will cover all his expenses. All perfectly legal. Now, what if i pay him to buy a Kindle edition for me?

Quote:

Originally Posted by DMB

How do you then transfer it?

I have pretty much the same dilemma, I live in South Africa and can only buy from the .com website, TBH I much prefer the .co.uk website, for me it has a different variety, better layout and generally much better pricing; as an example I saw a book that I was interested in on the UK website - The hanging shed - priced at £1.00, the US website had the same book at $11.99! Fortunately my daughter stays in the UK, I asked her to open an account with Amazon, I put in my CC details, I email her to tell her what to buy and she downloads it to K4PC, she then 'liberates' it in calibre and emails me the resulting mobi file. One can argue the ethics of this ad infinitum but in my mind I have legally paid for the book and it is only for my use - my daughter hasn't got the time to read and wouldn't be interested in my choices anyway, I hope this helps.
Cheers
Paul

DMB · 01-22-2011, 01:40 PM

I suppose that If someone from the USA wanted to do a swap deal with me we could make an arrangement to email each other books in that fashion. I do have a UK account.

Pushka · 01-22-2011, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DMB

I suppose that If someone from the USA wanted to do a swap deal with me we could make an arrangement to email each other books in that fashion. I do have a UK account.

That would work only if you first stripped the drm and emailed in mobi format.

abookreader · 01-22-2011, 05:57 PM

Personally I think it is much more ethical (and probably easier) to just go to the Manage My Kindle page on Amazon.com, change your address to a Pizza Hut in Boise Idaho and buy the book than it is for Internet acquaintances to be stripping DRM and trading books back and forth. I know that Amazon might put a stop on you eventually but really - if you're buying the book you are buying the book as far as I'm concerned.

I mean, I think a really high percentage of users here probably have Calibre goodies that make what you suggest possible but if we start swapping books around then we are ...... a file sharing site and I know the MR people aren't going to like that.

I understand your frustration though. Its difficult when you are sitting there with money in hand and they don't want to sell to you.

Poppaea · 01-22-2011, 06:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by abookreader

Personally I think it is much more ethical (and probably easier) to just go to the Manage My Kindle page on Amazon.com, change your address to a Pizza Hut in Boise Idaho and buy the book than it is for Internet acquaintances to be stripping DRM and trading books back and forth. I know that Amazon might put a stop on you eventually but really - if you're buying the book you are buying the book as far as I'm concerned.

I mean, I think a really high percentage of users here probably have Calibre goodies that make what you suggest possible but if we start swapping books around then we are ...... a file sharing site and I know the MR people aren't going to like that.

I understand your frustration though. Its difficult when you are sitting there with money in hand and they don't want to sell to you.

I just use my Borderlinx address and that works fine. I'd use it to buy stuff too, so why not do the same thing to buy my books? This is what Borderlinx or USUnlocked are for: to enable you to buy from US only sites.

Paulinafrica · 01-23-2011, 12:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Poppaea

I just use my Borderlinx address and that works fine. I'd use it to buy stuff too, so why not do the same thing to buy my books? This is what Borderlinx or USUnlocked are for: to enable you to buy from US only sites.

Spoofing your address to fool Amazon, only really works on a very short term basis, it really isn't a long term or practical solution, but then again neither is the method that I've described previously, although that can be a reasonable medium term solution. The problem is, that when placing your order Amazon picks up your IP address and if it's not where you say it is, you won't be allowed to make a purchase, it's as simple as that. I've tried the proxy server route and that hasn't worked for me at all - probably insufficient bandwidth, who knows?
Cheers
Paul

Pushka · 01-23-2011, 02:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paulinafrica

Spoofing your address to fool Amazon, only really works on a very short term basis, it really isn't a long term or practical solution
Paul

I have been lucky for over a year then.

orlok · 01-23-2011, 05:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paulinafrica

Spoofing your address to fool Amazon, only really works on a very short term basis, it really isn't a long term or practical solution, but then again neither is the method that I've described previously, although that can be a reasonable medium term solution. The problem is, that when placing your order Amazon picks up your IP address and if it's not where you say it is, you won't be allowed to make a purchase, it's as simple as that. I've tried the proxy server route and that hasn't worked for me at all - probably insufficient bandwidth, who knows?
Cheers
Paul

I had exactly the same experience, even using a US based proxy, and my Amazon UK & USA account got really confused in the process. On the US account it kept telling me my Kindle was registered to another country, even though I had't registered one against this account, and when I tried to it just kept returing to the log-in screen

Darkitow · 01-23-2011, 06:59 AM

I'm reading this post and my eyes are really spinning from the confusion. This matter of author rights is understandable, but to make you not able to buy a book digitally because you're not from the country is allowed, for me is just nonsense.

I mean, what's the difference (save the money for the travel) for me to go to the country and buy the book there and take it back, or to buy the paperbook and make them ship it to me?

I didn't have any problem with this yet because I got my Kindle not to long ago, and I didn't purchase many books as I'm still getting my already owned paperbooks, but I got tickled when I bought my pack with the Kindle and the lighed cover. I tried to get one of those sticker skins for it and they don't send them here (Spain).

I really don't get why can't I buy an american book from Europe. The writter is oing to get the same money, all the rest is just selfishness from editors.

01-21-2011, 02:06 PM	#19
Starko Zealot Posts: 123 Karma: 998177 Join Date: Aug 2010 Device: Kindle 3	There are no noticeable consequences. If there is no "legal" way to get a book because of some complicated copyright deals or lack of them, one might ask himself "which of the two felonies should i commit - falsify address or download pirated copy off the net?" Since in some countries downloading books from P2P or torrents is not considered breaking law, downloading a free copy from the net is legally and ethically more correct than lying to Amazon? Here is another interesting question: I can ask a US based friend of mine to buy a printed book for me in the States and mail it to me. Of course i will cover all his expenses. All perfectly legal. Now, what if i pay him to buy a Kindle edition for me? Last edited by Starko; 01-21-2011 at 02:10 PM.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Buy US Kindle book outside US?	djgreedo	Amazon Kindle	9	08-08-2010 05:18 AM
How can an international user buy and use Amazon Kindle?	Over	Amazon Kindle	16	10-29-2009 06:17 PM
Can I buy a book for someone else's Kindle?	da_jane	Amazon Kindle	1	08-06-2008 04:05 PM
Buy Kindle book overseas	adamtang	Amazon Kindle	2	05-01-2008 10:25 AM
Where can international people buy this?	davidw89	Sony Reader	10	03-18-2008 08:48 PM

01-21-2011, 03:30 PM	#21
abookreader Wizard Posts: 1,516 Karma: 2567610 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindles - Keyboard, Fire, 2-US, iPhone, iPAD	The only people who have to worry about transferring from website to website are those who switch back and forth from amazon.co.uk and amazon.com. As of right now UK buyers can buy from amazon.co.uk, but they don't have to. They can happily remain at amazon.com and buy in US Dollars if they choose. Everybody else in the Amazon-verse buys their eBooks from Amazon.com You just log in to Amazon.com and go to the Manage Your Kindle website and put in your address. You can choose to use a VPN server and pay by gift card to appear more authentic, or not. If you are going to buy a book or two I personally wouldn't bother. If it is going to be SOP for you then I'd try to limit the number of books purchased at once and use the "hide me" methods. After you buy, change your address back and your books are still in the Kindle archives. Whether or not this is illegal I have no idea, consult your conscious and your lawyer I guess. It probably is against the Amazon TOS somewhere but they are really so vague as to what somebody's "address" might be that I don't know that either.

01-22-2011, 01:40 PM	#23
DMB Old Git Posts: 958 Karma: 1840790 Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Switzerland (mostly) Device: Two kindle PWs wifi, kindle fire, iPad3 wifi	I suppose that If someone from the USA wanted to do a swap deal with me we could make an arrangement to email each other books in that fashion. I do have a UK account.

01-22-2011, 05:57 PM	#25
abookreader Wizard Posts: 1,516 Karma: 2567610 Join Date: Oct 2009 Device: Kindles - Keyboard, Fire, 2-US, iPhone, iPAD	Personally I think it is much more ethical (and probably easier) to just go to the Manage My Kindle page on Amazon.com, change your address to a Pizza Hut in Boise Idaho and buy the book than it is for Internet acquaintances to be stripping DRM and trading books back and forth. I know that Amazon might put a stop on you eventually but really - if you're buying the book you are buying the book as far as I'm concerned. I mean, I think a really high percentage of users here probably have Calibre goodies that make what you suggest possible but if we start swapping books around then we are ...... a file sharing site and I know the MR people aren't going to like that. I understand your frustration though. Its difficult when you are sitting there with money in hand and they don't want to sell to you.

01-23-2011, 06:59 AM	#30
Darkitow Enthusiast Posts: 43 Karma: 230 Join Date: Jan 2011 Device: Kindle 3	I'm reading this post and my eyes are really spinning from the confusion. This matter of author rights is understandable, but to make you not able to buy a book digitally because you're not from the country is allowed, for me is just nonsense. I mean, what's the difference (save the money for the travel) for me to go to the country and buy the book there and take it back, or to buy the paperbook and make them ship it to me? I didn't have any problem with this yet because I got my Kindle not to long ago, and I didn't purchase many books as I'm still getting my already owned paperbooks, but I got tickled when I bought my pack with the Kindle and the lighed cover. I tried to get one of those sticker skins for it and they don't send them here (Spain). I really don't get why can't I buy an american book from Europe. The writter is oing to get the same money, all the rest is just selfishness from editors.

Advert

Advert