Direct Sales: British Pubishers and Amazon Throw Elbows

My prognostication of war between publishers and retailers is less than a week old and the first clash of arms has already taken place. A price war, pitting a powerful publishing group and Amazon, has broken out in England over the very issues aired in my blog, Direct Sales: Publishing's Last Stand. Penguin, Bloomsbury and several other publishers are offering some titles directly to the consumer at discounts higher than those offered by retailer Amazon. Dalya Alberge, Arts Correspondent for The Times (of London, not New York) reports (Amazon Furious After Publishers Undercut Its Book Prices Online) that, "Penguin’s online store has reduced a boxed set of 20 Penguin Epics from £100 to £55. Amazon sells the collection at £98.64. Bloomsbury offers a 25 per cent discount on all its books, with free postage and packing on British deliveries over £20."

Publishers fear that Amazon will retaliate, and publishers on the other side of the pond will be watching anxiously. Publishers on this side of the pond should be just as attentive. This is no small matter. Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other retailers have a lot to lose if publishers gain a toehold in the competition for sales to consumers.

Watch this space for more news. Helmet and body armor recommended: you are entering a war zone.

- Richard Curtis