The WSJ cites source who says the House Judiciary Committee “has been moving toward scheduling a hearing” on the proposed settlement of the Google Book Search lawsuits, though a representative for committee chairperson Re. John Conyers “said he wasn’t aware of a hearing being scheduled” and explained that “just because a committee was making inquiries about a topic, it didn’t mean they would necessarily hold a hearing.” Google spokesperson Gabriel Stricker says they have “been in touch with members of Congress and understand that there’s interest in having a hearing to explore the settlement.”WSJ Separately, the European Commission has agreed […]
eNews
What We Talk About When We Talk About Amazon
Last week was a bizarre one in the annals of Amazon-dominated news, closing with Friday’s Orwellian removal of unauthorized editions of two books by the actual George Orwell from a small number of Kindle owners’ libraries. Among the things I find interesting about the story: * Internet outrage began with an incorrect blog post on the NYT’s site from columnist David Pogue who shot first without asking: “Apparently the publisher changed its mind about offering an electronic edition, and apparently Amazon, whose business lives and dies by publisher happiness, caved,” Pogue wrote. Bear in mind that Pogue has makes a […]
Amazon Offers Free Replacement for Cracked Kindles; Closing In on UK-indle?
Amazon spokesman Andrew Herdener tells us, while the company will not comment on active litigation, “we encourage anyone who has an issue with the cover attachment mechanism to return the cover and device for a free replacement so we can investigate further.” Separately, yesterday UK trade publication Mobile Today claimed Amazon is in “advanced negotiations with a mobile operator” in the UK, aiming for a pre-Christmas launch of Kindle in that market. MT says the UK version will be made and handled by Qualcomm, and will add wifi connectivity along with the cellular connection. But “the online retailer is known […]
Dems Want to Give Students 400k Kindles; WSJ Survey Student Doubts on eTextbooks
The Democratic Leadership Council has taken California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’ move to eventually save money on education spending by spurring open-source textbooks a few steps further. In a report called “A Kindle in Every Backpack” they present an oddly ambitious “proposal for etextbooks in American schools.” (It’s also odd that they chose to endorse a particular brand of ereader in their title….) Saying “the Kindle in every backpack isn’t just an educational gimmick–it could improve education quality and save money,” the organization recommends a three-step initiative that begins with “a set of pilot programs in the first year” that gives […]
Kindle Owner Files Suit Against Amazon Saying Cover Cracks Kindles; Seeks Class Action Status
Matthew Geise filed suit against Amazon in a Seattle US District Court yesterday seeking class action status for Kindle 2 and SuperKindle owners with devices “installed in a Kindle Cover designed by Amazon.” The suit alleges that “Internet complaint board and product review sites contain scores, if not hundreds, of complaints from Kindle owners whose Kindles have been damaged by the Kindle Covers.” Users report that the cover cause cracks or “bulges” on the side of the Kindle “at or near where the Kindle Cover attaches to the Kindle,” and indicate that the cracks eventually get big enough that the […]
NYT On eBook Release Timing–Ditto
The NYT follows-up the WSJ piece on Sourcebooks’ decision to postpone the ebook release of their new hardcover YA novel Bran Hambric. As we noted in our write-up on Monday, the Times reiterates that every house with a major frontlist fiction release is debating whether to delay publication in ebook form (and some are contemplating much broader shifts in the timing of their ebook releases). Since no one is talking about it on the record, the Times story doesn’t add much that you don’t already know. Interesting, in a quirky way, is this paragraph: “For now, Amazon is taking a […]