I was a relatively early adopter of the Kindle, thanks to a birthday gift of the Kindle 2 in 2009. It has been a transformative device for me; I’ve read more since I got the Kindle than I had previously, and I pretty much read every day with it.
Sadly, the Kindle 2, which had been in service for so long, has recently decided it had enough. My screen effectively began to divide in two and reading on it became nearly impossible. The time had come to replace it. Continue reading
I’ve said it here on the blog a few times now: Amazon really seems to have its eye on making experiences superior for customers. Yet one of their more intriguing efforts is something I didn’t know about for nearly six months, until this week: Amazon Smile will donate a small percentage of the money you spend on qualifying items to the charity of your choice. Continue reading
For those following along here on the blog, my last post on the ebook settlements noted that we should see some movement on the settlement payouts by April. Sure enough, this morning Amazon emailed me, along with other Kindle owners, to announce the credit had been deposited and was available. Continue reading
My voracious appetite for eBooks for a number of years (lately, it’s been off, but that’s because I’ve shifted back to print for a bit for a few series I always read each winter) means I’ve continued to watch carefully the progress of the eBook settlements with interest. Sadly, the wait continues, but there’s finally a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. Continue reading
I had become aware of it when it first happened, but over the break I was finally able to act: most of You Don’t Know Jack’s classic editions had been re-released! In high school and college I spent countless hours playing the game “where high culture and pop culture collide,” so I was excited to get my hands on the classic editions again. Continue reading
I’ve been continually impressed with the ways that Citi has been making their rewards points accessible and redeemable. Over the year’s I’ve talked about programs such as their dual-mode credit card, which allows redemption of some points at the push of a button, as well as the Shop With Points feature on Amazon, which lets users redeem points for part or all of a purchase. Now comes their latest innovation: Rewards Accounts Numbers, which takes the entire process a step further. Continue reading
I’ve written here previously about the eBook settlements book publishers made regarding lawsuits around eBook pricing. Previously, settlement amounts made the news, but the actual payments seemed further and further in the distance. Continue reading
Last year, I shared with you Amazon’s 25 Days of Free Holiday Songs, a recurring promotion they have offered which features 25 free MP3s to download for the holidays. The good news is it’s back, and the mixed news is it’s about as good as last year’s batch. Continue reading
It wasn’t that long ago that I wrote a post about the pending eBook settlements, and how it looked like it wouldn’t be much longer to receive the settlement payments. I was wrong, but fortunately the news isn’t all bad.
Amazon sent out notices to customers around Labor Day weekend noting that the payments were still pending, but they had grown, due to additional settlements made with more publishers. Thanks to the additional payments, the amount paid per book has now increased, with New York Times bestsellers estimated to garner a refund of $3.06 per book, with non-bestsellers $.73 per book. That’s more than double the previously announced numbers.
Still the same is people who bought eBooks from a major company, such as Amazon and Barnes & Noble, will by default receive the refunds directly from the company as credit towards future purchases. As a result of the additional settlements, however, people have now been given a second window to request a check, as opposed to receiving a credit. That window ends in mid-October.
Still vague is when the money will be paid, but the earliest will be early December, which is when the final hearing will be; appeals could force further delays, but with all the publishers on board and the payments heavily increased, it’s less likely to happen now.
Awhile back, I wrote about a technology that let Amazon provide customers a digital copy of CDs previously purchased through the service. That service is now expanding to Kindle copies of books previously bought in print. The catch with the MatchBook service is that in many cases customers will need to pay a small fee to get the Kindle copy, but the fee (when required) will range between 99 cents and $2.99. Continue reading