It has been obvious since France and Luxembourg first lowered their VAT on sales on ebooks as of the beginning of 2012 (to 7 percent and 3 percent respectively) that they were doing so in violation–and intentional defiance–of European Union law. After a stern letter, a “reasoned opinion,” and some more waiting, 14 months after the tax changes began the European Commission is finally saying it will take the two nations to the European Court of Justice. No trial date was disclosed, so we expect it will be more months still before any proceedings begin. And even after the two […]
Legal
Three Independent Bookstores File Class Action Suit Against Amazon and Big Six, Seeking Removal of eBook DRM
Apparently the book business and litigation will be increasingly intertwined, with the latest unexpected lawsuit coming from three independent booksellers. Book House of Stuyvesant Plaza in Albany; Posman Books of NYC; and Fiction Addition of South Carolina filed a suit in New York Federal Court on February 15 seeking class action status on behalf of hundreds “independent brick-and-mortar bookstores who sell e-books.” They are suing Amazon and the six largest trade publishers, claiming “unreasonable restraint of trade and commerce in the market for e-books,” and also charge Amazon with attempted monopolization of the ebook market and violations of sections 1 […]
Judge Cote Sets Schedule For Reviewing Macmillan Settlement; Where Are the Discounts?
In a order issued Tuesday afternoon, Judge Cote set out a proposed schedule for reviewing Macmillan’s settlements with the DOJ, 49 states, and the civil class-action group, announced earlier this month. Per the schedule, the government must file all public comments by May 30, with additional motions on the settlement due from the DOJ by June 13. Responses to the motion are due June 27, and the government’s reply due July 8. A final hearing date before approving the settlements was not indicated in the papers, however. In a separate order, the DOJ ordered a teleconference hearing for Friday, February […]
People, Etc.
Lonely Planet recently announced a number of promotions and new hires. Leslie Davisson has been promoted to director, trade channel marketing and national accounts, while Gerilyn Attebery moves up to senior design manager and Rana Freedman has been promoted to senior manager, consumer marketing and communications. Jennifer Pentes has joined as production lead overseeing the new US-based Client Solutions delivery team. Previously she was assistant director, creative services and marketing, at Sundance Institute. Rachel Berg has been named content producer, previously principal of editorial & promotional content at Travelocity. Finally, Clare Chadwick has moved from Lonely Planet’s Melbourne office to […]
Macmillan Settles 3 Cases; Discounting Starts this Week, Stimulus Starts Soon, But Penguin Still Hasn’t Settled with States
On Friday Macmillan actually agreed to settle three lawsuits all at once–the ebook pricing case brought by the Department of Justice, but also the parallel case led by a consortium of attorneys general for the states and even the class-action case filed on behalf of consumers. Separately, also on Friday, the presiding judge over all of the cases Denise Cote gave final approval to the states’ settlement with Hachette Book Group, HarperCollins and Simon & Schuster. As a result, the payout of restitution to qualifying consumers will begin “as soon as practicable.” (Earlier documents indicated payouts would begin 30 days […]
Discounting of Macmillan Books to Start By Next Week
When Macmillan ceo John Sargent said in a letter Friday morning that discounting of their ebooks under the settlement with Department of Justice “will take effect quickly,” he really meant it. The court filing is more blunt on the matter: “Macmillan must allow its e-book retailers to discount within three business days of agreeing to the settlement, even if it has not formalized new contracts with retailers.” DOJ writes that “the proposed Macmillan Final Judgment does not give Macmillan a choice” in notifying and renegotiating with retailers–as the original settlement had done–“to provide for more prompt relief to consumers.” But it’s […]