Amazon Is the Reader's Friend : A Debate
(eVideo)

English

Originally released by Intelligence2, 2015.

Streaming video file encoded with permission for digital streaming by Infobase on July 08, 2015.

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Is Amazon good for readers and the book industry? In 2014, Amazon and the publishing house Hachette settled a dispute over who should set the price for e-books. In Amazon's view, lower prices mean more sales and more readers, and that's a boon for business and consumers. But to publishers, the price of an e-book must reflect the costs invested, from the author's advance to the book's production. The conflict raised questions about the value of books, the business practices of Amazon, and the role of publishers in the 21st century. Do cheaper prices benefit readers by providing low-cost books? Or do they hurt readers by shortchanging authors and publishers, potentially putting them out of business? Amazon, which accounts for the sales of 41 percent of all new books and 67 percent of all e-books, is threatening to become a monopoly and upend the publishing industry. But is publishing an old-fashioned enterprise in need of disruption? Is Amazon the reader's friend?

9 & up.

Streaming video file.

System requirements: Access Video On Demand playback platform.

Closed-captioned.