Amazon/BookSurge Issue
Mar
30
2008

As some folks may be aware, Amazon has been informing those small publishers who sell POD books through their service they must use Amazon’s POD service, BookSurge.

From the Wall Street Journal: Amazon.com Inc., flexing its muscles as a major book retailer, notified publishers who print books on demand that they will have to use its on-demand printing facilities if they want their books directly sold on Amazon’s Web site.

You can read more about it here, here at slashdot and

Here at Publisher’s Weekly: Over the last year, BookSurge has been trying to cut into the market share of pod leader Lightning Source and is using the selling clout of Amazon to generate more business. “I feel like the flea between two giant elephants,” said the head of one pod publisher about the upcoming battle between Lightning Source and BookSurge/Amazon. He said although the deal with BookSurge will be more expensive, he has no choice but to make the move since most of his authors expect their titles to be for sale on Amazon. He added that his company will also continue to use Lightning Source for printing as well. Amazon’s BookSurge mandate extends to traditional publishers as well as to online pod houses.

I’m waiting to see how this shakes out. I have a great deal of concern obviously as Samhain and EC are both publishers who use POD technology. Samhain I know is working on it and informed authors via the author loop on Friday of the situation. I know via the articles above that Whiskey Creek books have had their buy buttons disabled already but my checks of my books at Amazon have so far shown my books still available including pre-orders. I’m hoping we can hear answers soo so that anxious authors can at least know what the future holds and start to prepare one way or the other.

2 comments to “Amazon/BookSurge Issue”

  1. Greta
    March 30th, 2008 at 5:21 pm · Link

    Yes please keep us posted on this. I have purchased all of your books except for one through Amazon. I usually place if not one then two orders a month through Amazon. The only book your I could not get through Amazon was Thrice United and I went through Ellora’s Cave for it.



  2. Charlene
    March 30th, 2008 at 9:10 pm · Link

    We do live in interesting times, don’t we? 🙄 I’m trying not to be overly concerned, but a check of Barnes and Noble’s site shows that not all my print books are in stock there.