I didn’t know anything about this before seeing this post – so here’s a timely alert thanks to Mark…
The UK’s prestigious Waterstone’s bookstore chain (the British equivalent of B&N for those unfamiliar) has finally called it a day with its token ebook store, and customers have until mid-June to transition to Kobo.
I’ve been with the Waterstone’s ebook store since the beginning. It helped make one of my titles the eleventh bestselling ebook in the UK back in 2011, and while sales hardly compared to Kindle UK, they were well worth having.
That was then. In recent years Waterstone’s sales have dwindled dreadfully (to be fair possibly a reflection of my shift to children’s titles the last two years, which are generally less rewarding as ebooks) and it’s long since become clear the Waterstone’e book store had lost the will to live. Waterstone’s chief James Daunt knows a futile battle when he sees one. I’m just surprised it took this long.
It’s another notch on Amazon’s bedpost. Waterstone’s…
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Me neither Chris, thanks for reblogging. Sad news indeed… 😦
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Just another hole in the dike (? is that a right comparison) – real bookstores are closing left and right and I wonder if Nook will succumb to Kindle here in the US..
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I had the pleasure of visiting Waterstones in Cork in Ireland and Belfast in Northern Ireland. Is it just the ebook section that’s folding, or are the physical stores in danger now?
Irony, Amazon is starting to open physical stores.
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Just the eBooks Kurt 🐵
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I am afraid the writing was on the wall.. Soon it will just be the second-hand bookshops holding the fort. Hang onto your print copies…we may be leaving precious gifts to the next generations!
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Worth more as antiques Sally 😀
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I know.. I sold a print copy the other day and stared at the tenner in my hand.. first I had seen for a long time!! Not that I don’t get excited when I see the £1.10 in the credit line of my bank statement of course!! XX
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😄😘
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I think it was clear from Day 1 that no deal with Amazon to sell Kindle files was ever going to be profitable for another major retailer. With real book sales rising again, this probably makes financial sense. Why spend a lot of money on supporting a platform that generates no realistic revenue?
Plenty of people out there with KOBO s too, as sold in W H Smiths and Sainsbury’s, and it’s easy enough to make a book available there.
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I didn’t want to like… but options are somewhat limited. 😇
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I know Adele…
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Now, I am not sure how you heard me sing? Obviously you have and I can relate to the comparison to Adele but, it is Ellen… a name that one day will never be confused with a vocal artist, but a literary champion a modest genius, a candidate for great things. *cough* until then Chris! Try harder *sniff* haahahaaaa! Oh dear that was fun *skips away*.
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I’m SOOOOO Sorry Ellen – I’m all over the place today – Time for my medications and a long nap in my special white jacket with all the straps – Sigh 😀
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Haha! I love to banter with you. I am trying my hand at humour, hence no fresh post this week. It seems to be easier to my tongue than on paper. 😉😇
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😄😄😄
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