Over the past few years, I’ve encountered countless startups that claim they are going to disrupt or revolutionize book publishing.

I once thought we might see one of those take off. Today, I’m not so sure. Book-related startups face a particularly tough path forward. Here are a few reasons why.

When Amazon is the chief disruptor, the odds are stacked against you

Any company that comes along trying to reinvent book publishing is competing not only with traditional book publishers but also with Amazon(s AMZN), which is almost 20 years old but keeps finding new ways to shake things up. Print book buying continues to move online and Amazon, which is now delivering on Sundays and offering same-day delivery in a growing number of cities, has a lock on that business. Kindle, launched in 2007, is the dominant ebook reading platform and Amazon is continually rolling out improvements to the Kindle…

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Surging Rents Force Booksellers Out

27 April 2014 by particularkev

The link below is to an article that looks at why booksellers are closing down in New York City and I think the article provides some perspective to the debate about bookstore closures. It is all too easy to blame Amazon, online sales, etc – but there are other forces at play. Bookstores need to have a good look at their business model before they blame the easier targets for their demise.

For more visit:
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/26/business/media/bookstores-forsake-manhattan-as-rents-surge.html

The absurd ebook case: Apple fights on as consumers spend settlement money at Amazon

27 April 2014 by particularkev

Gigaom

The high-fives must have been flying at Amazon(s amzn) this morning: millions of the company’s customers got notices to spend credits at its Kindle store, and Amazon didn’t have to pay a cent. Meanwhile, rival Apple(s aapl) will likely underwrite an even bigger shopping spree for Amazon customers sometime yet year.

Welcome to the ironic denouement of l’affaire ebooks, which reached a climax in 2013 when a federal judge found that Apple had brokered a conspiracy with book publishers to fix prices. The legal tussle resulted in the publishers settling their cases — which is what paid for the customer credits that went out today — while Apple fought on alone.

For now, the biggest winner is Amazon, which already dominated the ebook market at the time of the price-fixing scheme in 2010. Today, as a result of lawsuits brought by the Justice Department and state governments, Amazon is in an even stronger position with the publishers; it will also get a healthy cut of the $160 million or…

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Samsung & Amazon Partnership

21 April 2014 by particularkev

The link below is to an article that takes a look at the new partnership between Samsung and Amazon, which includes a new Kindle app and a free book service called ‘Samsung Book Deals.’

For more visit:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/samsung-amazon-team-on-new-ebook-club_b84916

Scribd and Lonely Planet Partnership

21 April 2014 by particularkev

The rapidly advancing ebook subscription service Scribd, has teamed up with Lonely Planet to form a travel category. The link below is to an article reporting on this new partnership.

For more visit:
http://www.mediabistro.com/galleycat/scribd-launches-travel-category-with-lonely-planet-partnership_b84043

Amazon Books Synced to GoodReads

20 April 2014 by particularkev

The link below is to an article that reports on Amazon’s efforts to link its book selling business with GoodReads the syncing of Kindle Books with GoodReads. This could be a very useful feature for users of both Amazon and Goodreads.

For more visit:
http://goodereader.com/blog/e-book-news/amazon-books-can-now-be-added-to-your-goodreads-shelf