• The Hub

    News, Notes, Talk

    A Seattle firm is officially suing Amazon for fixing book prices.

    By 
    March 30, 2021, 1:31pm

    This past Thursday, Seattle law firm Hagens Berman filed a proposed class-action lawsuit on behalf of Illinois bookseller Bookends & Beginnings, alleging Amazon colluded to fix prices on print books.

    The suit claims that Amazon’s restrictive contracts with the “Big Five” publishers have made it impossible for book retailers to beat Amazon on price, harming retailers’ sales. The contracts prohibit the publishers from selling books to other retailers for less than they offer Amazon.

    Nina Barrett, owner of Bookends & Beginnings, said in a statement that Amazon’s growth has threatened her business. “I’ve watched Amazon grow into the juggernaut it’s become,” said Barrett. “I’ve experienced firsthand the devastation to publishing, bookselling, and to local brick-and-mortar shopping that’s resulted.”

    Earlier this year, Hagens Berman filed a class-action lawsuit against Amazon accusing Amazon of artificially inflating the retail price of e-books through anticompetitive agreements with the “Big Five.”

    [via The Seattle Times]

    Amazon Big Five Bookends & Beginnings bookstores retailers The Hub

    • Become a Lit Hub Supporting Member: Because Books Matter

    For the past decade, Literary Hub has brought you the best of the book world for free—no paywall. But our future relies on you. In return for a donation, you’ll get an ad-free reading experience, exclusive editors’ picks, book giveaways, and our coveted Joan Didion Lit Hub tote bag. Most importantly, you’ll keep independent book coverage alive and thriving on the internet.

    Become a member for as low as $5/month

    Dismiss without supporting Lit Hub
    x