Amazon's AbeBooks Backs Down After Booksellers Stage Global Protest (theguardian.com) 26
An "extraordinary and unprecedented" global protest from antiquarian booksellers has forced the Amazon-owned secondhand marketplace AbeBooks to backtrack on its decision to pull out of several countries. From a report: AbeBooks had told bookshops in countries including Hungary, the Czech Republic, South Korea and Russia that it would no longer support them from 30 November, citing migration to a new payment service provider as the reason for the withdrawal. The move prompted almost 600 booksellers in 27 countries to pull more than 3.5m titles from Abebooks' site, putting them on "vacation" as they cited the motto of the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers, "Amor librorum nos unit" (love of books unites us). On Wednesday, president of ILAB Sally Burdon met AbeBooks chief executive Arkady Vitrouk to discuss the decision. It was agreed that booksellers in the four affected countries would be able to trade under current conditions until 31 December, with a solution to allow them to use the website indefinitely to follow.
Was pleased to be involved in this... (Score:3)
As a rare book dealer and ABAA/ILAB member, I was pleased and impressed with both how many in the trade joined this and how quickly it came together. I was more impressed to see how quickly ABE backed off...
Little things can matter...
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when the electricity goes out, a candle and a good book is always appreciated. ;-)
Sure, as long as it is a rechargable LED candle [amazon.com]. It is better for your eyes and the environment than an inefficient CO2-spewing wax candle.
Another option would be to sit in the dark and listen to an audiobook.
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Free flow of books .. sure ... as long as you are living in former British colony. ... Amazon says ...sorry you are not allowed to purchase this book.
When somebody wants to buy ebook from Amazon in English
That's when you fire up your VPN.
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But but but... free market! (Score:1)
We can't let customers go around telling companies how to run their business! The businessman is sacrosanct! He must be protected against all offenses! I say we must prohibit all boycotts [congress.gov]! Amazon must protect itself and push for legislation that forces people to buy their services, just like the insurance companies demanded from Obamacare. Those that raise their voice in protest should be shot!
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Your link is about how the US Congress says the US Government isn't supporting a UN resolution to boycott. It doesn't make it illegal for anyone else to do so.
And, whether you think it made sense or not, the reason people had to buy insurance is cause the companies had to offer it regardless of preexisting conditions at the same price. Otherwise people only buy insurance once sick. And they just had to buy some insurance. It can be from any company. So you can boycott Blue Cross Blue Shield.
Collective Boycott (Score:2)
Good on them, glad enough at the outcome.
BUT, isn't this a collective boycott? Which is illegal in many many jurisdictions? You can strike as a worker, with rules and procedures for doing so, but you do the same as a group of businesses, and in many places it is illegal.