Special Offers ads questions

[pdurrant]

Originally Posted by gambr

Why several topics are related to DeDRM then? What you are saying is ridiculous!

Anyway, on Amazon web page they wrote the ads are only visible in standby: that's not true!!! Now they want me to pay for ads removal? They are just dishonest!

Ads are only visible in standby. The recommendations on the home screen can be turned off in the preferences.

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by pdurrant

Ads are only visible in standby. The recommendations on the home screen can be turned off in the preferences.

They still show up in list view.

[j.p.s]

Originally Posted by gambr

Why several topics are related to DeDRM then? What you are saying is ridiculous!

Anyway, on Amazon web page they wrote the ads are only visible in standby: that's not true!!! Now they want me to pay for ads removal? They are just dishonest!

The price of the devices with ads is discounted. If you have the ads removed, they want the discount back.

[gambr]

Originally Posted by j.p.s

The price of the devices with ads is discounted. If you have the ads removed, they want the discount back.

The relation discount-ads is not clear to buyers. The ads are NOT ONLY visible in standby.

What about DeDRM topics open in this forum? Is DeDRM a legal stuff? Is there anyone loosing money in this case?

[John F]

Originally Posted by j.p.s

The price of the devices with ads is discounted. If you have the ads removed, they want the discount back.

Are you sure about this? Looking at the competition (in the U.S.), the Nook GL3 is $119 and I don't think it has ads, and the Kobo Clara is $129 and I don't think it has ads.

Looks like the no ads version is the standard, and to get it it with the Kindles, you need to pay extra.

[GlenBarrington]

Originally Posted by gambr

Anyway, on Amazon web page they wrote the ads are only visible in standby: that's not true!!! Now they want me to pay for ads removal? They are just dishonest!

I don't think it's dishonest. They are making you an arms length transaction offer, "We will sell you this device for this much money, but for that price, you have to be willing to look at some marketing material. OR, you can pay a little more and NOT see the marketing material. Take it or leave it."

I don't have to like it, you don't have to like it. But they aren't lying to us about it. They are making you an offer. If you take their offer, it seems reasonable for them to expect you to pay the difference if you change your mind.

[Lady Stardust]

Originally Posted by John F

Are you sure about this? Looking at the competition (in the U.S.), the Nook GL3 is $119 and I don't think it has ads, and the Kobo Clara is $129 and I don't think it has ads.

Looks like the no ads version is the standard, and to get it it with the Kindles, you need to pay extra.

Why do you think Nook and Kobo set the standard?
Amazon clearly states

What are Special Offers?

We keep our prices low by displaying product recommendations and deals on the
lockscreen without interrupting use of the device.

If you select Special Offers, you may pay to remove them later by visiting
Manage Your Content and Devices on Amazon.com from your computer or
by calling Customer Service.

[John F]

Originally Posted by Lady Stardust

Why do you think Nook and Kobo set the standard?
Amazon clearly states

2 out of 3 looks like more of a standard than 1 out of 3.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by j.p.s

The price of the devices with ads is discounted. If you have the ads removed, they want the discount back.

Originally Posted by John F

Are you sure about this? Looking at the competition (in the U.S.), the Nook GL3 is $119 and I don't think it has ads, and the Kobo Clara is $129 and I don't think it has ads.

Looks like the no ads version is the standard, and to get it it with the Kindles, you need to pay extra.

The price of the Kindle (with ads) is discounted when compared to Kindles without ads. While it's true that buying the Kindle Papermate without ads is more expensive than buying the Glowlight or Clara – it's also true that the Kindle has a superior dictionary and and (in my opinion) Amazon has a superior infrastructure (not to mention X-Ray and few other features not found in the others). So it's like comparing apples to oranges. And, for many of use who don't mind the ads (or don't mind them enough to get rid of them) the price of the Paperwhite (or in my case, the Kindle Basic) IS the comparison price we pay.

[John F]

Originally Posted by rcentros

The price of the Kindle (with ads) is discounted when compared to Kindles without ads.

Or, Amazon charges extra to buy a Kindle without ads.

... While it's true that buying the Kindle Papermate without ads is more expensive than buying the Glowlight or Clara – it's also true that the Kindle has a superior dictionary and and (in my opinion) Amazon has a superior infrastructure (not to mention X-Ray and few other features not found in the others). So it's like comparing apples to oranges. ...

I'm guessing the others also have their pluses and minuses as far as software/firmware.

...And, for many of use who don't mind the ads (or don't mind them enough to get rid of them) the price of the Paperwhite (or in my case, the Kindle Basic) IS the comparison price we pay.

Which is fine, and there are also many people who dislike the ads, so when looking at the price, it adds a little more (~25% for the paperwhite) to get rid of them.

[rcentros]

Originally Posted by John F

Which is fine, and there are also many people who dislike the ads, so when looking at the price, it adds a little more (~25% for the paperwhite) to get rid of them.

Actually it adds about 8.5% to Paperwhite's price to get rid of the ads (assuming the Paperwhite is not on sale).

[mathil]

This seems like the kind of thread that will pop up easily whenever a user searches the forum for info, so I'll hijack the conversation a bit (sorry, everyone) to point out something.

The "contact the customer service and they will remove the ads for free!!!" thing is something can happen in the US, possibly in the UK as well from the reports I've seen, but does not necessarily apply if you come from other countries. It is not Amazon's "general" policy. For example, you cannot remove the special offers on Kindles that are bought in Japan: there is no option in the Devices menu, and contacting the customer service does not work either. I had to deregister it, re-register it to my Italian account, and then contact the customer service who did not offer to remove them for free but simply guided me through the steps to pay the required fee. I've never heard of any Kindle user from my country getting the ads removed for free either.

Mobileread as a forum has a vast majority of US users, and US users are obviously not going to be aware of Amazon's policies outside their own country (not a complaint, just a statement). So if you come from another country, ask and make sure what you read applies to yours too. Another misconception I've often seen is that 'books on Amazon are cheaper!' and that is an advantage to be considered when buying Kindles, but this, too, depends on US laws and does not apply everywhere. In some countries -- like mine -- the publishing houses set the price and the discounts, not the retailer; so books will cost the same and will be discounted at the same time on all platforms, Amazon included.

[John F]

Originally Posted by rcentros

Actually it adds about 8.5% to Paperwhite's price to get rid of the ads (assuming the Paperwhite is not on sale).

I guess we are both wrong. Looking at the price of the Paperwhite, I see $119 (U.S., no sale price). To get it without special offers, you need to add $20. So that looks like 16%?

[Lady Stardust]

Originally Posted by mathil

This seems like the kind of thread that will pop up easily whenever a user searches the forum for info, so I'll hijack the conversation a bit (sorry, everyone) to point out something.

The "contact the customer service and they will remove the ads for free!!!" thing is something can happen in the US, possibly in the UK as well from the reports I've seen, but does not necessarily apply if you come from other countries. It is not Amazon's "general" policy. For example, you cannot remove the special offers on Kindles that are bought in Japan: there is no option in the Devices menu, and contacting the customer service does not work either. I had to deregister it, re-register it to my Italian account, and then contact the customer service who did not offer to remove them for free but simply guided me through the steps to pay the required fee. I've never heard of any Kindle user from my country getting the ads removed for free either.

I am sorry but this is not true. I bought Kindle Oasis (KOA2) with special offers in Japan (first time for me ever) from Amazon Japan with Japan issued credit card. Once I realised that even with using Kindle cover, you can't just open the cover and end up from the lock screen with the ad straight in the book (but that you need one more tap), I contacted Amazon customer support. After being told I can return Kinddle at no cost, I said I didn't know about this feature and that I didn't want to return KOA2 (which I got with 4000 Yen prime discount).
So, they removed the specail offers after deducting 2000 Yen from my credit card, which was the difference between the special offers KOA2 and no special offers KOA2.

[mathil]

Originally Posted by Lady Stardust

I am sorry but this is not true. I bought Kindle Oasis (KOA2) with special offers in Japan (first time for me ever) from Amazon Japan with Japan issued credit card. Once I realised that even with using Kindle cover, you can't just open the cover and end up from the lock screen with the ad straight in the book (but that you need one more tap), I contacted Amazon customer support. After being told I can return Kinddle at no cost, I said I didn't know about this feature and that I didn't want to return KOA2 (which I got with 4000 Yen prime discount).
So, they removed the specail offers after deducting 2000 Yen from my credit card, which was the difference between the special offers KOA2 and no special offers KOA2.

Well, you should be glad; the customer service person must have made an exception specifically for you. As I said, the removal of the special offers is not supported by Amazon.co.jp for their Kindles, and it specifies so on the Special Offers information page:

Kindle電子書籍リーダー: キャンペーン情報付きモデルの場合、キャンペーン情報を非表示にすることはできません。キャンペーン情報の表示をご希望でない場合は、キャンペーン情報がついていないモデルをお選び ください。

(very) rough translation: "The display of ads in Kindle models that are sold with Special Offers cannot be removed. If you do not want to see the ads, choose a model with no Special Offers."

In my case specifically, when I (belatedly) realized that there was no button in the Content and Devices page, I tried contacting customer service in the hope they would take pity on me and remove them. I contacted them repeatedly, telling them that I was a foreigner and did not realize that Amazon Japan had a different policy from my country, and that I was willing to pay what was required; they told me that I could send my Paperwhite back and buy another one, but I'd moved back home and wasn't living in Japan anymore, so I couldn't do that. They excused themselves and told me there was nothing they could do. I contacted them several times and always got the same response, which is why I then tried registering it to my Italian account. Thankfully, that worked, and then when I reregistered it to my amazon.co.jp account the ads were gone.
So, what happened to you is not the norm. I'm happy for you, but if users want to buy Japanese kindles and use them with their Japanese accounts/billing information (I keep mine because it's the only way of buying ebooks in Japanese) they must be aware of the situation.