Q&A: What does 'spiral bound' mean on Amazon Marketplace?
QUESTION: I've been listing some hardcover nonfiction books on Amazon and have noticed some other sellers descriptions mentioning "spiral-bound issue," "different cover" or "later edition." Is this against Amazon's policy? These are high-volume sellers with lots of feedback.
ANSWER: The listings you see with different bindings are usually from booksellers who have purchased rights to reprint certain books as "print-on-demand" softcovers or Xeroxed reprints. For purposes of this discussion, we'll assume that these sellers aren't offering pirated materials. (If you do see a listing that does not look kosher, you should report it to Amazon at reports@amazon.com.)
Assuming there's no copyright violation, the problem occurs when the buyer receives something different than expected. The first sentence in Amazon's listing rules is "Do not deviate from the product format represented on a retail page." In other words, you not supposed to sell a softcover if the book's "Product Details" section indicates "hardcover."
For certain scarce nonfiction titles, where the buyer is primarily seeking the information in the book, they are unlikely to be upset with a softcover that has been clearly described by the seller. Some buyers would rather have a crisp, new printing rather than a musty, 50-year-old book.
But in many cases, customers (especially collectors) will feel cheated if they do not receive a copy of the book as it was originally printed.
When you see a lot of variation like this in seller descriptions, it's a good idea to provide a detailed description of your hardcover, even if you're repeating the information in the "Product Details" section.
Conflicts like this will be a growing problem on Amazon, as print-on-demand technology becomes more commonplace.
ANSWER: The listings you see with different bindings are usually from booksellers who have purchased rights to reprint certain books as "print-on-demand" softcovers or Xeroxed reprints. For purposes of this discussion, we'll assume that these sellers aren't offering pirated materials. (If you do see a listing that does not look kosher, you should report it to Amazon at reports@amazon.com.)
Assuming there's no copyright violation, the problem occurs when the buyer receives something different than expected. The first sentence in Amazon's listing rules is "Do not deviate from the product format represented on a retail page." In other words, you not supposed to sell a softcover if the book's "Product Details" section indicates "hardcover."
For certain scarce nonfiction titles, where the buyer is primarily seeking the information in the book, they are unlikely to be upset with a softcover that has been clearly described by the seller. Some buyers would rather have a crisp, new printing rather than a musty, 50-year-old book.
But in many cases, customers (especially collectors) will feel cheated if they do not receive a copy of the book as it was originally printed.
When you see a lot of variation like this in seller descriptions, it's a good idea to provide a detailed description of your hardcover, even if you're repeating the information in the "Product Details" section.
Conflicts like this will be a growing problem on Amazon, as print-on-demand technology becomes more commonplace.
posted by Steve Weber at 4/26/2006
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