What the Amazon/Hachette publishing battle means for readers

Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos
Online retail giant Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos unveils the Kindle DX during a press conference in New York, May 06, 2009.
EMMANUEL DUNAND/AFP/Getty Images

On Sunday, more than 900 authors publicly called on Amazon to change its tactics in the dispute with book publisher Hachette.

The authors did it in an open letter in The New York Times and you'll recognize many of the writers: Stephen King, Richard Russo, Sara Paretsky, Jennifer Egan and many more.

The writers reminded Amazon that they'd helped the company build its brand and "this is no way to treat a business partner. Nor is it the right way to treat your friends."

On The Daily Circuit, we discuss the details of the long-simmering dispute between Amazon and publishers and what it means for the future of book publishing and access.

Are book publishers right to resist Amazon's pressure to lower e-book prices? Is Amazon--which is now the biggest book retailer in America--right to push publishers to lower prices for e-books? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Does book editing matter to you? (with tweets) · stephcurtis

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