Authors Group Will Ask Justice Department to Probe Amazon
A group of authors protesting Amazon.com ‘s ongoing contract negotiation with publisher Hachette Book Group plans to ask the Justice Department to investigate the retailer’s business practices.
The group, Authors United, plans to send a letter to William Baer, the head of the department’s antitrust division, said Douglas Preston, a Hachette-published author and organizer of the group. Preston says he has the backing of about 1,000 authors including Junot Diaz and Stephen King.
An Amazon spokesman didn’t respond to a request for comment.
While negotiating with Hachette over the price of e-books, Amazon has limited preorders of some Hachette titles, reduced discounts and delayed shipping times as a negotiating tactic. Amazon wants to sell most e-books at $9.99, the price it says spurs the most sales. Hachette said it should be allowed to price its e-books as it chooses.
More: Authors Group Will Ask Justice Department to Probe Amazon - Digits - WSJ