UK: eBook agency pricing investigation begins

TechRadar UK: "The Office of Fair Trading is investigating how ebooks are priced after receiving 'a significant number of complaints'. The complaints pertain to pricing arrangements between book publishers and retailers which could breach competition rules. ... "

UK: Move to Scrap VAT on eBooks

Computing News: "Pressure is mounting on the UK government to scrap VAT on e-books to put them on an equal footing with printed books and e-publications elsewhere. So far 42 MPs from different political parties have signed a Commons motion put down by Glasgow Labour MP Tom Harris following the increase in the VAT rate from 17.5 per cent to 20 per cent earlier this month. ... "

UK Book Chain Collapses

Inside Retailing > Articles page: "Another UK book chain has followed Borders UK into administration. British Bookshops & Stationers has become the first retail casualty of 2011 according to a report in Retail Week. The chain, which comprised 51 stores and employed 300 staff, blamed tough trading conditions in the second half of 2010 for its demise. The business was sold by private equity house Endless to MD John Simpson about 12 months ago. Administrators have appointed a stock disposal specialist to run the chain until its future is clear. ... "

UK Retail Book Sales Pick Up in Final Week Before Xmas

The Bookseller: "The last full week of sales before Christmas shows the book trade coming out ahead of the general retail trend, and raises hope for the last few days of the year. Spending at UK booksellers jumped 12.3% week-on-week last week, despite widespread reports that the big freeze had badly affected footfall at retailers and a Synovate footfall estimate of a 20% drop in shoppers. ... "

Publishers Shoot Selves in Feet with High eBook Prices

Arielle Ford @ Huffpost: "Recently Amazon.co.uk eliminated their discounts on ebooks within 24 hours of being notified by big publishers (Penguin, Hachette and HarperCollins) that retailers would no longer set the selling price of books; publishers would now dictate the terms. As a result, the pricing of many ebooks were marked up to equal or even higher than the printed versions. This led to a revolt by readers ..."

Next Kindle Store: Germany

theBookseller.com: "Germany could become the next market outside of the United States and United Kingdom to have a dedicated Kindle store. Buchmarkt reports that publishers at the recent Homer 3.0 conference in Berlin said they were in discussions with Amazon representatives about a 2011 launch of a Kindle store. The e-book reading device has been available in Germany since late 2009. However, the overwhelming majority of the books available have been in English and Amazon.de has lacked its own Kindle store. In August, the United Kingdom became the first country outside of the US to get a dedicated e-book store, with UK pricing."

Stars Fall in UK Protest Over Amazon eBook Prices

guardian.co.uk: "Authors found themselves in the firing line this week as fans furious at sudden rises in Amazon's Kindle prices protested by giving their books one-star reviews on the retailer's website. Iain Banks, Stephen King, Maeve Binchy, Elizabeth Buchan and Michael McIntyre were among those authors whose books were given new, low-ranking reviews on the basis of their Kindle ebook price, as part of a concerted attempt by readers to voice their displeasure. Earlier this week, Amazon.co.uk was forced to accept new commercial terms from big publishers Penguin, Hachette and HarperCollins, who have switched to the 'agency model' for their ebooks. On this model it is publishers, not retailers, who set the selling price."

Amazon UK Makes Switch to Agency Terms with Three Publishers

Seems the big boys continue to insist on shooting themselves in the digital feet. theBookseller.com: "Amazon.co.uk has moved on to the agency model in the UK with publishers Hachette, HarperCollins and Penguin now setting their own e-book prices. Customers buying an e-book from the Kindle store from any of the three publishers are told: 'This price was set by the publisher.' A Penguin spokesperson said: 'I can confirm we are now on the agency model with Amazon as of today.' Penguin and HarperCollins have followed Hachette, which switched to agency pricing in September. Amazon is the first online e-bookseller to make the switch, with no Penguin or Hachette e-books yet available for sale on either Waterstones.com or W H Smith's website. ... "