lee_rowan ([info]lee_rowan) wrote,
@ 2009-11-01 14:25:00
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Current mood: Irate at presumptous asses

Yet more asshattery from Amazon
Amazon, always on the search for ways to improve their profits while irritating the hell out of authors, has come up with a doozy: ALTERING WORDS AT RANDOM IN E-BOOKS as a good way to catch pirates.

I have to admit I thought of this myself -- deliberately changing a word or two in copies sent out for review, because I know for certain that someone I used to trust has been uploading books. But my notion was for the author and publisher to do this -- so that it could be done without affecting the story. Amazon, apparently, thinks bunging in a random synonym is the way to go.


http://dearauthor. com/wordpress/ 2009/10/29/ thursday- midday-links- roundup/comment- page-1/#comment- 220203

And the link provided to the actual patent request, here:

http://patft. uspto.gov/ netacgi/nph- Parser?Sect1= PTO1&Sect2= HITOFF&d= PALL&p=1& u=/netahtml/ PTO/srchnum. htm&r=1&f= G&l=50&s1= 7,610,382. PN.&OS=PN/ 7,610,382& RS=PN/7,610, 382

Now, altering, say, a word in the blurbage? The font of the page numbers? Sure. But to change, for example, 'gasps' to 'pants?' The classic, "his breath came in short pants" would make the writer look like a fool. "Frigid" and "chilly" are not the same thing.

I'm sure Amazon thinks the actual, y'know, words in a book don't really matter. It's just "product." And Jane at Dear Author doesn't seem to get it, either... All I can say is, I do NOT want Amazon rewriting one word of my books.


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[info]junkfood_monkey
2009-11-01 07:53 pm UTC (link)
For feck's sake. There has to be a way to do it "invisibly" rather than changing content! Like you say, in something other than the story prose. Who the hell would come up with such an idea? Clearly they didn't think of asking any writers what they thought of the idea.

It's a thin end of the wedge thing. Once they get "permission" as it were to make a change for something that sounds like it's for the author's benefit, fighting piracy, what other reasons will they come up with later?

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[info]lee_rowan
2009-11-01 08:13 pm UTC (link)
Ask writers what they thought? Those peons? Why should they have any say in what's done with their books?

I fully expect the next 'cunning scheme' will be to tell publishers that if they want to sell through Amazon, they can't sell anywhere else, or something equally outrageous. From what they've done in the past, from where I stand, it looks as though Amazon simply wants to control ALL publishing, period.

I used to deal with Abe Books... now Amazon bought them out. But since they list the used-book resellers, one CAN contact the sellers directly, and cut Amazon out. (evil grin)

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[info]semioticwarrior
2009-11-02 12:07 am UTC (link)
>I fully expect the next 'cunning scheme' will be to tell publishers that if they want to sell through Amazon, they can't sell anywhere else

Don't they already punish publishers who price their books lower than Amazon's prices, and charge a hefty percentage from publishers who do work with them?

Perhaps next they'll develop a program to hetero-ize GLBT fiction for the easily offended masses. Hey, authors! It'll double your audience!

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