Dear readers, This will be a controversial post. I wasn’t going to get further involved, but I’ve been dragged into the debate willy nilly, so I am speaking out, come what may. You may have already seen some of this on… Read More »David vs. Goliath: The Fight Spills Out
This is the type of post I don’t like writing. Mainly because I hate to be the bearer of bad news. I am writing it now because this issue is something everyone should be paying attention to, readers, publishers, and authors alike. This morning I did my usual rounds of news-checking, which includes reading the Smashwords blog. If you get a chance, give this article on Amazon vs. Hachette a read. It’ll be an eye-opening experience.
A quick recap: Amazon is trying to lower the royalty rates it pays to Hachette publishing house. Hachette does not want to agree. The negotiations have led to some pretty nasty practices by Amazon to list Hachette titles as out of stock, advertising “similar books at lower prices”, etc. Basically, here’s what you need to know: