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Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

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Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#71

Post by kshacker »

egeozcan wrote: post #60
icqFDR wrote: post #44

I’d advise anyone buying e-books on Amazon to think it through carefully. My account was banned recently because, years ago, I ordered two paper books that Amazon said would be split into two shipments. Both books arrived without any issues, but later Amazon refunded me for one of them, claiming that one package never arrived. This happened 4–5 years ago. Apparently, during a recent review, they decided this counted…

A friend of mine received a double shipment for a $300 order. Being honest, he contacted customer service to arrange a return. Everything seemed fine until a few days later when he noticed they had also refunded his original payment. He reached out again to let them know, and they said they’d just recharge his card. Apparently, that transaction failed (no clear reason why), and without any warning, they banned his ac…

I wonder just like retailers are required to account for local sales taxes (I know it is not that clear cut), there should be some enforcement mechanism to settle disputes locally. Setup an agency which "legally" provides support for google, Amazon, and all those unreachable entities. Provides local jobs as well as quick grievance redressal. Maybe something like consumer protection agency but not federal, maybe at least one per county maybe more depending on the population.

Edit - I don't mind paying for the service. Maybe charge everyone $99 to file a case to avoid everyone piling on, but it helps resolve most egregious ones, and fee could be refunded at the agency's discretion.

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#72

Post by icqFDR »

sheepscreek wrote: post #50
icqFDR wrote: post #44

I’d advise anyone buying e-books on Amazon to think it through carefully. My account was banned recently because, years ago, I ordered two paper books that Amazon said would be split into two shipments. Both books arrived without any issues, but later Amazon refunded me for one of them, claiming that one package never arrived. This happened 4–5 years ago. Apparently, during a recent review, they decided this counted…

That is truly insane - sorry that you’re unable to access the books that you rightly purchased. Though I highly doubt this alone was the reason for an account ban. Is it possible your credentials were stolen/misused without your knowledge?

That’s possible, but I can’t know for sure because Amazon never provided any concrete details. I didn’t receive any warning emails, only a cryptic message after the ban:

> "Amazon.co.uk found that the rate at which refunds were occurring on your account was extraordinary and could not continue."

After looking through my order history, the only refund I could find on this account was the one related to the book I mentioned above. If there was any other activity or misuse, Amazon hasn’t disclosed it to me, which makes it impossible to verify or dispute their conclusion.

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#73

Post by carlosjobim »

rgegerge wrote: post #30
syntaxing wrote: post #19

Just get a kobo instead. The price difference between with ads and a new kobo is minimal. Not worth the Amazon headache with a locked down device.

There are two single line comments recommending kobo over kindle in this thread. How do I know this is a genuine recommendation and not astroturfing?

How do you know anything? You can never know for sure if you can trust another person, and this is why people can get schizophrenia.

Asking people to verify that they are honest will never help you. Dishonest people will of course lie to you and say they are honest. While honest people will be insulted by your question and not want to engage with you.

What you can do is verify. Try a Kobo, try a Kindle. Make up your own mind.

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#74

Post by everdrive »

jrm4 wrote: post #64

Haha, what a headline. The internet "allows" ePub and PDF downloads for ALL books. Adjust yourselves accordingly.

Amazon deserves a lot of criticism in the general sense, but this can only be seen as a positive move. Most importantly, if they set an industry standard, others might follow.

Fundamentally, I prefer a physical book to a digital one. But, the primary reason I'd never even entertain a digital book is the lack of ownership. Ownership is incredibly important, and we need to celebrate victories when they happen.

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#75

Post by IAmBroom »

mapt wrote: post #61
icqFDR wrote: post #44

I’d advise anyone buying e-books on Amazon to think it through carefully. My account was banned recently because, years ago, I ordered two paper books that Amazon said would be split into two shipments. Both books arrived without any issues, but later Amazon refunded me for one of them, claiming that one package never arrived. This happened 4–5 years ago. Apparently, during a recent review, they decided this counted…

The only reason for a recent review (like with all the recently banned Facebook accounts from 2009) is firing up AI tools that didn't exist 5 years ago.

Or general auditing purposes.

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#76

Post by buu709 »

timmg wrote: post #63
buu709 wrote: post #41

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You'd be surprised. Tor and Solaris both offer DRM free books on Amazon. Also anything self published tends to be DRM free. I saw the writing on the wall and downloaded my books from Amazon a few months before their announcement. Out of around 1000 books I had 300ish that were DRM free.

Dumb question, but: is there a way to find/filter ones that are? (I can't seem to find anything in the (web) UI that makes it clear which books are downloadable.)

There wasn't when I went through my collection. Reading the announcement from Amazon it looks like the existing DRM free books will not be automatically flagged to be downloadable.

The publisher/author will have to go through a process to have their books be downloadable again.

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#77

Post by andylynch »

kshacker wrote: post #71
egeozcan wrote: post #60

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A friend of mine received a double shipment for a $300 order. Being honest, he contacted customer service to arrange a return. Everything seemed fine until a few days later when he noticed they had also refunded his original payment. He reached out again to let them know, and they said they’d just recharge his card. Apparently, that transaction failed (no clear reason why), and without any warning, they banned his ac…

I wonder just like retailers are required to account for local sales taxes (I know it is not that clear cut), there should be some enforcement mechanism to settle disputes locally. Setup an agency which "legally" provides support for google, Amazon, and all those unreachable entities. Provides local jobs as well as quick grievance redressal. Maybe something like consumer protection agency but not federal, maybe at le…

I can't speak for how effective the process is, but this is the idea behind the EU/UK GPSR's Authorised Representative framework - though not exactly local (that would be excessive, since GPSR also applies to much smaller sellers too)

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#78

Post by philo_sophia »

nippoo wrote: post #51
icqFDR wrote: post #44

I’d advise anyone buying e-books on Amazon to think it through carefully. My account was banned recently because, years ago, I ordered two paper books that Amazon said would be split into two shipments. Both books arrived without any issues, but later Amazon refunded me for one of them, claiming that one package never arrived. This happened 4–5 years ago. Apparently, during a recent review, they decided this counted…

They failed to deliver a Pixel phone to me - they never even tried to deliver it and the status said "permanent delivery failure" so I assumed they'd automatically refund me. Fast forward a few months, I never received a refund and they claim they have no record any more. I could chargeback my credit card but I imagine I'd also be permanently banned from Amazon - so instead I accept they've just stolen $1000 from me…

Just ask for the refund. If they lock your account you can always make a new one (gonna be a scary day when that isn't possibl cuz they use biometrics or something.....).

But if they just close your account in response to asking for a rightful refund.... Literal thievery

Re: Amazon will allow ePub and PDF downloads for DRM-free eBooks

#79

Post by IAmBroom »

Gazoche wrote: post #52
amluto wrote: post #28

Earlier quoted context omitted.

All books published by Tor are DRM-free.

...in the US. I tried to buy an ebook of the Stormlight Archive from Australia and was sad to discover that DRM-free versions were not available.

I think you missed the joke. Tor is an anonymous relay service, often used for pirating copies.
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