Why Buy the Whole Book If You Just Need a Chapter?

By Michael Santo
Contributing Writer, RealTechNews

Amazon.com stole some of Google’s thunder today. Google launched the beta of Google Print today. The beta only indexes “public domain” books that are not protected by copyright. But while reaction to the beta and to Google’s plans have been mixed, Amazon.com today announced two differing strategies that challenge Google’s plans.

Amazon.com on Thursday said it would let readers buy digital pages, chapters and entire books through two plans that present a broad challenge to a controversial strategy of Google Inc.

The Amazon Pages program, in coordination with publishers, lets users buy Internet access to either a page, chapter or the entirety of a book, while a second program, Amazon Upgrade, gives online access to a work that the consumer buys in physical form for an extra fee.

Amazon immediately drew praise from the book industry. The president of the Association of American Publishers, Patricia Schroeder, said Amazon appeared to be complying with copyright laws while Google’s actions amounted to “rogue eminent domain.”

Prices for Amazon Pages would vary by publisher and potentially by book, but most would cost a few cents per page, Bezos said. He used an example in the Amazon Upgrade program of a book costing $20 and the online access another $1.99. Source: Reuters

We Say: This is a great idea. I can see programmers buying a hardcopy book and purchasing online access so they could use it at work or at an alternate job site. I can see college students buying only those pages they need from a textbook. I think Amazon.com has hit upon a format that works well within copyright law and still gives online access.