MJ sent me an interesting letter during September that I have been meaning to post:
MatchBook is a new service from Amazon that is due to launch sometime in October. This service puts a new spin in the publishing world! MatchBook works like this: when you buy a print edition book from the MatchBook section of Amazon, it will allow you to also buy a copy of the same book as an e-book for either $2.99, $1.99, $.99 or free. The books have to be in the Matchbook program to qualify for this, and it will apply to thousands of books dating back to 1995 (when Amazon opened its online store). It not only applies to your present purchases, it also applies to your book purchasing history with Amazon. Did you know that Amazon has a list of every book you have ever purchased from them?
For example, if you bought the book I Know This Much is True, by Wally Lamb, back in 1998 from Amazon (this book is part of the MatchBook service), and you would now like to re-read it on your e-reading device, you would be able to purchase the electronic version through MatchBook for anywhere between $2.99 and free. (By the way, the prices are determined by the publishers, and the titles that are available are determined by both the publishers and the authors.) I think this is really great for those of you who love your print version books, but who are slightly envious of the convenience offered with an e-book.
Amazon MatchBook Program Information
This looks like a pretty great deal, MJ. Thank you so much for this letter!
[My husband read the “real book” copies of all of Patrick O’Brian’s Aubrey/Maturin series, and now he is re-reading them in Kindle format (so he can control the font size). When he heard about Amazon’s MatchBook program, he wondered if these books would be in the MatchBook program. He didn’t bother to find out since he didn’t get the books from Amazon…]
Thanks, again, MJ!
Julia says
They did this with their CDs and mp3 files – if you purchased a CD from them that is now eligible for “ripping” the mp3 files from, you can get a free copy. It’s a nice idea, but since almost all of the CDs I have bought from them over the years were purchased as gifts, I was rather surprised (and dismayed) by the eclectic collection of music that appeared on my Kindle Fire. I thought someone had hacked my account, because I sure didn’t purchase that music to listen to.
On the bright side, my best friend now has a similar collection of music she doesn’t like, thanks to all of her gifts to me over the years. It gives us a whole new reason to complain about each other’s taste in music. 🙂
Danna - cozy mystery list says
Oh, Julia, I didn’t realize Amazon would automatically give you free copies of all the CDs you bought. Good to know! We used to fill in my husband’s record collection with CDs. I had no idea Amazon would now let us rip them onto our MP3s… While it doesn’t sound like this worked out for you and your friend, we all enjoy the same type of music as my husband does, so this will work out great for us. (I’m sorry for you, though.)
Sheila says
This sounds like a great deal. Wonder if Barnes and Noble with follow with a similar program for us Nook owners.
Felipe Adan Lerma says
I think it’s a really good program too, and am wondering what titles I may end up with I’d forgotten about. 🙂
I’ve only published two books into print (via Createspace) from my ebooks, and I’m esp glad I’m getting a chance to participate in Matchbook. I’m kinda hoping they’ll do something similar with Audio books.
Judy says
I feel like Sheila does. Love my nook but sometimes B&N is slow with new ideas although I will say they are always quick to help you with a problem.
Maria (BearMountainBooks) says
The program was/is supposed to roll out by the end of this month, but I haven’t heard that it has started. Most of my books are in the program so I expect to be notified when it starts!
They are doing a similar program with book and audible books. That started this past week. I blogged about it–Grab the link (it’s a couple of posts down now) and it will show you which books you bought that qualify for a cheaper audible file!