Here are two books and a Kindle Single that are all about the business of Kindle books and Amazon: how ebooks have disrupted the publishing and reading landscapes, the true story behind the Kindle book price wars and the U.S. government’s antitrust case against Amazon, and the true story of how Jeff Bezos built Amazon from a company that operated in the red for five straight years into the e-tailing behemoth it is today.
Burning the Page: The eBook revolution and the future of reading (4.5/5 stars, currently priced at $7.69)
A groundbreaking vision on the future of reading, from an early innovator on Amazon’s Kindle team.
• Is digital the death knell for print?
• Or will it reinvigorate the written word?
• What will happen to bookstores, book browsing, libraries, even autographs?
• Will they die out—or evolve into something new?
In Burning the Page, digital pioneer Jason Merkoski charts the ebook revolution’s striking impact on the ways in which we create, discover, and share ideas. From the sleek halls of Silicon Valley to the jungles of Southeast Asia, Merkoski explores how ebooks came to be and predicts innovative and interactive ways digital content will shape our lives. Throughout, you are invited to continue the conversation online and help shape this exciting new world of “Reading 2.0.”
For those who love books, collect books, own an e-reader, vow never to own one, or simply want to know where books are headed, this is a crucial guide to both the future of reading and to our digital culture as a whole.
The Battle of $9.99: How Apple, Amazon, and the Big Six Publishers Changed the E-Book Business Overnight (Kindle Single, 5/5 stars, currently priced at $1.99)
Little did Apple know when it introduced the iPad in 2010 that it would be setting itself up to land in federal court on price-fixing charges.
This blow-by-blow account charts how five of America’s six largest publishers, afraid that bookselling powerhouse Amazon’s $9.99 price for Kindle e-books would undermine the industry, spent a few frantic weeks in early 2010 deep in negotiations with Apple to introduce a new business model for e-books, just in time for the launch of the iPad and the iBookstore.
The catch is, it all may have been illegal. From Publishers Weekly senior writer Andrew Richard Albanese comes the story of how the e-book business changed in a heartbeat. Based on voluminous evidence gathered for Apple’s trial, it is the story of how corporate titans fought it out behind the scenes and why the case matters to anyone who has ever bought an e-book.
Jeff Bezos’ Secrets of Success (4.5/5 stars, currently priced at $2.99)
Jeff Bezos is today’s best business success story. He not only managed to survive the tech bubble and the financial crisis but created one the most iconic brand names in electronic retail. Jeff Bezos’ Secrets of Success offers just facts and quotes for the reader to understand his business philosophy and accomplishments.
One Vine Voice Reviewer says:
I really enjoyed this book, having shopped with Ammy since the beginning or close to it. It’s short (695 locations) and is NOT a snoop through his life, although it contains some biographical information. I especially liked the “Amazon Timeline of Events,” which also includes the number of employees in each year. Wow! MOST highly recommended!