A few months ago, I wrote a post about how Amazon Kindle would level the playing field and allow more people to get their work published and reach a wider set of audience. At the same time, I concluded that we need to take the good with the bad. After all, if you allow everyone to bring their work to the Kindle platform, you are going to get a few very good books, lots of mediocre ones, and a few terrible ones. But shouldn’t Amazon at least check to see what’s being sold for the Kindle?
Take a look at the above book. The purpose of the book is to show you why you should buy a Kindle (instead of a Sony Reader). But here is the thing. Why would you want to buy such a book when you need a Kindle to read it? I am all for books that provide some value, but the above book should be a post on a blog and not a book in the Kindle store. It’s exciting to see Amazon allow everyone to get their work out in front of the community of Kindle owners. But Amazon has a responsibility to protect the interest of its customers. I am sure most Kindle owners are smart enough to ignore these books, but it’s very discouraging to see folks abuse the system and try to make quick bucks by selling junk for the Kindle platform (and if you think this is bad, wait till you see the support website for this book).
There is a good chance that Amazon will continue to allow folks to publish junk for the Kindle. And I am sure most Kindle owners will see through these works and won’t fall for them. But wouldn’t it be nice if Amazon took some time to clean up its Kindle store?
Your take: should Amazon take action and ban junk books and their authors?
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0 comments
#1CameronMarch 13, 2009, 8:40 pm
Unfortunately we will have to live with this junk.
The two reasons for this are the amount of time and effort that would be needed to actually screen out the junk and the issue of censorship.
Just look at how much crap apple gets for having quality controls on the App Store and even with those controls many of the apps are junk.
If Amazon started to screen books they would quickly get hit with charges of censorship and it would cost a lot of money to hire people to do.
Hopefully the ratings system that Amazon already has in place will be good enough to help people stay away from junk.
#2P. RadMarch 13, 2009, 9:16 pm
This is really criminal. I mean a Kindle’s Buyers guide for Kindle. If you already have a Kindle, you won’t need it. If you don’t, you can just read an article or maybe my review to see if it’s right for you
This is more than just junk. This is like scam.
Did you see the book’s website? It’s a site that redirects folks to Amazon’s website. It’s clearly a landing page designed to sell more Kindles. This is not a buyer’s guide. It’s a scam. But I am with you that folks will get mad at Amazon if they banned folks.
#3Bo BlakeMarch 14, 2009, 2:58 pm
Heavens no!
The last thing we need is Amazon trying to tell us what to read! If they did the purging you suggest, there would be an implication that what they allow for sale is (in a way) backed by Amazon.
What a can of worms…
Amazon would be crazy to get in that box.
#4P. RadMarch 14, 2009, 6:04 pm
Bo,
I am not suggesting Amazon telling us what to read, but I do believe there should be some control to deal with folks who abuse the system. Maybe allowing the community to flag scams. There are plenty of ways to avoid getting into that “box” and provide the consumer with some sort of protection. I do agree with you that Amazon getting too involved can have negative ramifications for all of us.
#5CameronMarch 18, 2009, 2:28 pm
Okay we do need some more quality control on the Kindle books.
I recently purchased a book and the formating was terrible.
I was luckily able to find a free copy in HTML format that converted very nicely
But it was shockingly bad.
Maybe amazon should offer publishers some type of quality check that makes sure the formating and general editing is good on Kindle documents. Make it an optional survey that will give readers some reassurance that they will at least be able to read what they buy.
#6P. RadMarch 18, 2009, 5:13 pm
Cameron,
You are right. It would be better for us customers and better for Amazon if there is some control. You can’t just allow any junk to make it to Kindle store. You can always return the book in 7 days though. So if you haven’t passed that, I recommend you return the book .
#7CameronMarch 18, 2009, 7:47 pm
nope that passed a long time ago.
It was even from a reputable publisher. I am rather surprised by it.
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