Book News: Obama Book’s Amazon Exclusivity Angers B&N
Michael Rogers -- Library Journal, 8/19/2008 7:42:00 AM
- B&N boycotting Robert Kuttner’s Obama’s Challenge
- Coupons for copies redeemable through Amazon distributed at Democratic convention
- Independent booksellers also may cancel orders
An exclusive giveaway deal with Amazon.com’s BookSurge POD service has landed Chelsea Green 
Publishing in hot water with competitor Barnes and Noble (B&N) as well as scores of independent booksellers, the AP reports. The publisher’s plans to distribute coupons for free copies of Robert Kuttner’s Obama’s Challenge America’s Economic Crisis and the Power of a Transformative Presidency at the Democratic National Convention August 25-28 in Denver that are redeemable only through Amazon has spurred B&N to cancel its order of several thousand copies. Independent booksellers also are threatening to drop orders as well as boycott other Chelsea Green titles. B&N will make the book available only as a special order through its online component B&N.com. Margo Baldwin, Chelsea Green’s president, defended her actions, telling booksellers, “This is about a publisher’s commitment to its author to get one of the very few pro-Obama books out into the marketplace in the shortest amount of time.” Despite B&N’s boycott, Baldwin said the book “will be a huge success.” The publisher is producing 75,000 copies, its largest first print run to date.
