By J.R. Wagner
So, I received this email today (below) from Barnes and Noble. I've been following the lawsuit from a peripheral perspective but never in any detail.
From a consumer's perspective I'm happy I may get a free e-book out of it.
From a writer's perspective I'm very concerned that the government is dictating how publishers price their e-books. I happily paid (as did everyone else who purchased them) the asking price and am a firm believer that the author should get whatever price the public is willing to pay for their work.
It is quite interesting- the direction digital publishing is heading.
Dear J.R. Wagner,
We're pleased to tell you that you are eligible for gift certificate credits thanks to recent legal settlements between States Attorneys General and three eBook publishers. Barnes & Noble was not a party to the settlements but as a NOOK® customer, you can take advantage of the benefits agreed to by the settling publishers.
Although we are required to notify you now of the settlements, there is nothing you need to do to receive the credits as you will receive them automatically in the form of an electronic gift certificate sent via email. Once the settlements' claim period ends, the Attorneys General will calculate the amount of your credits. If the Court gives final approval to the settlements, we expect to be able to send you your gift certificate in the first half of 2013.
Once you receive your gift certificate, you can register it on our website, www.bn.com, for up to one year. Once registered, no further action will be required on your part, and the certificate will have no expiration date and you can use it any time to shop the wide selection of great titles on bn.com.
You may prefer to receive a check instead of a gift certificate, or you may decide not to participate in this settlement at all. If you want to consider either of these options, we recommend that you review the steps you can take, as well as your rights, which are explained in the attached legal notice.
As always, we appreciate your business and thank you for being a valued NOOK and Barnes & Noble customer.
Sincerely,
Barnes & Noble
Benefits from an Attorney General E-books Settlement Fund
Para una notificación en Español, llamar o visitar nuestro website.Records indicate that you are eligible for a payment from Settlements reached by the State Attorneys General with E-book publishers Hachette, HarperCollins, and Simon & Schuster. The Settlements resolve an antitrust lawsuit about the price of electronic books (“E-books”). Barnes & Noble has not been sued in this case. It is providing this notice as a service to its customers.
What the Settlements ProvideThe Settlements create a $69 million fund for payments to consumers who purchased qualifying E-books from April 1, 2010 through May 21, 2012. If the Court approves the Settlements, eligible consumers like you will receive credits to your E-reader accounts. The credit can be used on any purchases of E-books or print books. The amount of your payment has been determined based on the qualifying E-book purchases identified by Barnes & Noble in your E-reader account.
How to Receive your BenefitBecause you are pre-qualified, you do not need to do anything at this time to receive your credit. If the Court approves the Settlements, you will receive another email letting you know how to activate your credit. Once you activate the credit, it will be applied to your account by Barnes & Noble. (If you bought E-books from more than one retailer, you may receive notices with different instructions about whether you will receive a credit or need to file a Claim Form for that retailer. You will have a separate claim for each retailer and you should follow the specific instructions from each one.)
You also have the option to receive a check instead of your credit. You can request a check by calling 1-866-621-4153, or going to the Settlement website listed below, and clicking on the Check Request Option link. Be sure to reference the Settlement ID number found at the bottom of this email.
The Settlement website is: www.EbooksAGSettlements.com
Your Other RightsYou can choose to exclude yourself from the Settlements and keep your right to sue on your own. If you exclude yourself, you can’t receive any benefits from the Settlements. If you don’t exclude yourself, you can submit objections about the Settlements.
Your written Exclusion Form or objections must be postmarked by December 12, 2012. Please visit the Settlement website for detailed information on how to submit a valid Exclusion Form or objection.
A separate lawsuit against two other publishers and Apple, Inc. continues and is set for a trial in 2013. Your rights in the separate suit are not affected by any action you take in regards to these Settlements. The Court will hold a hearing on February 8, 2013 at 10 a.m. to consider whether to approve the Settlements. You or your own lawyer may ask to appear and speak at the hearing.
For more detailed information:
Call 1-866-621-4153 or Visit www.EbooksAGSettlements.com
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Wait, so...these e-book distributors were sued (and lost) because they were charging "too much" for the e-books?
ReplyDeleteAs an indie, I reserve the right to charge whatever the hell I wanna. :3 Supply and demand dictates that y'know?
As is, I have nigh-infinite supply and apparently no demand. >XD
LOL Thomas. I don't completely understand the details of the suit -I think it was more about the publishers all saying 'okay, if you price your e-books at $12.99 or more we will do the same' thus, a kind of price fixing thing rather than simply charging too much.
ReplyDeleteKeep writing, brother. The more you have out there, the more eyes will see it (and hopefully tell others how great it is)