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Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

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Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#71

While I loved the kindle and still own one, I have since moved on an eink android reader with an isolated google account. Calibre, Overdrive, RSS, Syncthing and obsidian plus a small portable Bluetooth keyboard and I can read and take notes anywhere.

You seem to be describing an Android tablet with e-ink display. Aside from Remarkable, what else is out there worth buying?

Supernote, Onyx have a wide range of options.

Onyx relationship with Open Source licensing is… delicate. This could be a stopper for some.

I had a Remarkable 1 but I feel the company is trying to be the next Apple. Everything now is subscription. Shame, as The reading experience was good, writing was excellent, software was open but clunky.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#72
post #65

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I pay something like €5 to The Guardian and $2 to NYT (which I read very occasionally) every months. And then another €15 to a Swedish newspaper. That is very cheap to support independent journalism.

Wow, $2 is a good deal. I feel I paid that little to start, but now NYT charges me $20 CAD a month. I regularly debate whether it’s worth it or not, and it definitely stops me from subscribing to other publications.

Good luck canceling that subscription.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#73
post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Amazon doesn't want you to have a subscription to the New York Times. Amazon wants you to have a subscription to Amazon Unlimited, which would include access to the New York Times. Amazon would then pay the New York Times and all other periodicals an amount that Amazon thinks is fair based on how many people are reading their articles, like Amazon Unlimited books. This is very bad for big periodicals with many subscr…

At the same time, having to subscribe to specific periodical keeps me from doing it all. I see the these subscribe pop-ups every time I visit a newspaper, at least 5 different newspapers per day. It is just not affordable to have 5 subscriptions, so I end up subscribing to none.

Having the option to do either seems like the better approach for a consumer.

Worded differently, removing one of two options is worse for the consumer.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Amazon doesn't want you to have a subscription to the New York Times. Amazon wants you to have a subscription to Amazon Unlimited, which would include access to the New York Times. Amazon would then pay the New York Times and all other periodicals an amount that Amazon thinks is fair based on how many people are reading their articles, like Amazon Unlimited books. This is very bad for big periodicals with many subscr…

Thank you for the thoughtful explanation. I never thought about it from that angle before, that is such a powerful move from Amazon that I believe most of us can learn something from.

Except customers will just leave Amazon. Like they are doing with Music, and Video, and Prime. This move disadvantages everyone except Amazon. It should be investigated by SEC.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#75
post #25

> Amazon hasn’t shared its exact reason for the change (the company’s statement to publishers is here), but one obvious explanation is that relatively few people are buying these subscriptions and it doesn’t make financial sense to continue to support them. Instead, Amazon wants publishers to add their content to its $9.99/month digital subscription program, Kindle Unlimited, which includes a bunch of magazines I'm p…

This is to consolidate offerings, and drive more money to Amazon and less to 3rd parties. Just like retail, and skills. How is this not under investigation.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#76
post #3

I had to read the email I got about this several times because it didn't seem to make sense. Hang on, my New York Times subscription is going to end in September and then... that's it? The Kindle is wonderful for reading newspapers on, and now - what? And why? I'm sure that someone has a very good reason for the change. I'm also sure that I've never seen a deprecation so poorly communicated.

Amazon doesn't want you to have a subscription to the New York Times. Amazon wants you to have a subscription to Amazon Unlimited, which would include access to the New York Times. Amazon would then pay the New York Times and all other periodicals an amount that Amazon thinks is fair based on how many people are reading their articles, like Amazon Unlimited books. This is very bad for big periodicals with many subscr…

Amazon shuts down subscriptions for me while saying Kindle Unlimited is not available in my country.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#77
Back in 2015, I had a opportunity to work with a group of volunteers (non-profit organization that focused on community development in rural areas of Africa) and started using Kindles loaded with newspapers and magazines from the Kindle Newsstand as part of an education program. The whole group would visit villages and set up reading stations with the Kindles. That program over time, became so successful that it attracted the attention of other non-profit organizations, as well as government officials and educators. Like the political leaders talked about these kindles for many years and still do. The use of Kindles and other digital devices in education programs has become such an effective tool to reach out to remote and underprivileged areas around the world, and the world will miss Kindle Newsstand! Thanks for playing a role in providing access to reading materials in these communities:)

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#78
post #54

They need to at least provide an option for other publishers to also get their content on the kindle, other than Amazon’s own subscription service. Otherwise they are using an advantage in one market (devices) to obtain an advantage in a different market (online content). The EU will eat them alive if they try that anti-competitive behaviour.

They can by sending it to your Kindle email for that device. Instapaper does this to send you your saved items.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, the Kobo doesn't work with magazines either for me. An alternative is to use the Libby App on the phone. You can also download the magazines for offline reading. Or you could use the Libbyapp [1] on the browser to sign in to your Overdrive account, borrow and read the magazines. [1] https://libbyapp.com/

yup. That's what I do right now when I want to check out magazines. Though, I will admit that's not often With that being said, it would be amazing if Kobo can implement support for magazines so that you could use eink displays for reading magazines in a park on a sunny day without any glare

I believe it should be possible for some magazines. I read some issues of The Economist and National Geographic magazine, and they come with a 'reader mode' where the magazine page formatting is removed, and you are presented with bare text and images, like the Reader Mode in Firefox (and Chrome?).

That should work on a Kobo. But it requires Overdrive to recognize this and push the readable formatted magazine to the Kobo.

Re: Amazon shuts newspaper and magazine subscriptions for Kindle and print

#80

Back in 2015, I had a opportunity to work with a group of volunteers (non-profit organization that focused on community development in rural areas of Africa) and started using Kindles loaded with newspapers and magazines from the Kindle Newsstand as part of an education program. The whole group would visit villages and set up reading stations with the Kindles. That program over time, became so successful that it attr…

Around 2013 our university digitized their newspaper displays. Prior to the renovation, newspapers were posted daily in large vertical glass-covered display cases in the student lounge of the library (the library would buy and post two copies so all pages were face up). Tens of students at a time would slowly walk down the row of newspapers reading during their study breaks and quietly chatting while sipping on coffee.

After the lounge was renovated and made into a digital media space this culture completely disappeared. I saw maybe two people use the digital kiosks to read newspapers in the subsequent year. It was heartbreaking to see the culture of community newspaper reading just collapse.

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