"Amazon may change its advertising in 2012 and later years, and it would not serve the college store industry well if we were to spend hundreds of thousands of dollars litigating about advertisements that may no longer be used in the future," said NACS President Danny Key, CCR, Director of Bookstore Services at Wingate University, Wingate, NC.
The lawsuit arose because NACS filed a proceeding with the Better Business Bureau's National Advertising Division (NAD) complaining about Amazon's textbook price comparisons used in the 2011 spring semester. That advertising claimed students could save "up to 60%" on new textbooks, "up to 90%" on used textbooks, and that they could receive "up to 60%" on buy-back when dealing with Amazon.
Before the NAD could address whether Amazon's ads were substantiated, Amazon filed suit against NACS in federal court in Seattle seeking a judgment that its claims were neither false nor misleading under the federal Lanham Act. When Amazon filed its federal case, NAD decided not to consider the NACS complaint.
NACS sought to have the federal case dismissed on jurisdictional grounds, but the court denied the motion.
As part of the settlement process, Amazon provided NACS' attorneys, on a confidential basis, with the methodology by which it substantiates its savings claims and the results of its substantiation. While not endorsing the substantiation methodology or the results obtained, NACS agreed that it was sufficient to determine that there is no current dispute about the advertising that NACS had questioned in its NAD complaint. As a consequence, NACS and Amazon agreed to settle the litigation with no money being exchanged and an agreement not to challenge each other about substantially similar claims for at least one year.
Truth in Advertising Paramount
NACS is pleased that it was able to resolve this case efficiently, and that it has brought to the forefront once again the need for all retailers, whether physical stores or on-line sellers, the need to substantiate the claims that they make in their advertising.
NACS is convinced that students receive the best value for their textbook-buying dollars by purchasing course materials, whether in print or online, in or through the college store. Whether the student wants a new physical book, a used book, a course-pack, a rental, or an electronic book, the college store offers a range of options at the best value, and it remains the most accessible, user-friendly option for college students, while also supporting higher education.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Sunday, February 26, 2012
Saturday, February 25, 2012
THE AMAZON STORE OF MY DREAMS
Michael Kozlowski of Good E-Reader is reporting that Amazon.com plans to open a retail store in the Seattle area in the coming months. The store will supposedly feature Kindle e-readers and tablets as well as other products, and is said to be an experiment to see if a chain of such outlets would make sense.
As a long-time Amazon addict–I suspect I give it more of my money than I do any other single merchant–I instinctively like the idea of an Amazon store.
(MORE: Amazon Said to Be Opening Its First Brick-and-Mortar Store)
I also understand why Amazon itself might like like the idea of such an establishment. Lots of people will order a Kindle over the web, sight unseen, but some folks would prefer to try one in person. And while Kindles are available at a bevy of retailers these days–everywhere from RadioShack to airport shops–Amazon has little or no control over the quality of the salesmanship provided by its retail partners. None of them offer an Apple Store-level shopping experience. Or, really, anything as pleasant as Amazon’s own website.
But how should Amazon translate its (mostly) wonderful online experience into a retail environment?
Part of Amazon’s online wonderfulness is the phenomenal selection–gazillions of products offered by Amazon itself, and gazillions more from third-party sellers. No store that Amazon is likely to open will try to recreate that endless choice in brick-and-mortar form, and that’s OK.
It would be cool, however, if Amazon tried its hand at other sorts of gadgets besides e-readers and tablets. It already several house brands and offers a somewhat random assortment of AmazonBasics products. If there were Amazon HDTVs or Amazon set-top boxes or Amazon phones, I’d consider buying them at an Amazon store.
Read more: http://techland.time.com/2012/02/07/the-amazon-store-of-my-dreams/#ixzz1nQXrWWWC
As a long-time Amazon addict–I suspect I give it more of my money than I do any other single merchant–I instinctively like the idea of an Amazon store.
(MORE: Amazon Said to Be Opening Its First Brick-and-Mortar Store)
I also understand why Amazon itself might like like the idea of such an establishment. Lots of people will order a Kindle over the web, sight unseen, but some folks would prefer to try one in person. And while Kindles are available at a bevy of retailers these days–everywhere from RadioShack to airport shops–Amazon has little or no control over the quality of the salesmanship provided by its retail partners. None of them offer an Apple Store-level shopping experience. Or, really, anything as pleasant as Amazon’s own website.
But how should Amazon translate its (mostly) wonderful online experience into a retail environment?
Part of Amazon’s online wonderfulness is the phenomenal selection–gazillions of products offered by Amazon itself, and gazillions more from third-party sellers. No store that Amazon is likely to open will try to recreate that endless choice in brick-and-mortar form, and that’s OK.
It would be cool, however, if Amazon tried its hand at other sorts of gadgets besides e-readers and tablets. It already several house brands and offers a somewhat random assortment of AmazonBasics products. If there were Amazon HDTVs or Amazon set-top boxes or Amazon phones, I’d consider buying them at an Amazon store.
Read more: http://techland.time.com/2012/02/07/the-amazon-store-of-my-dreams/#ixzz1nQXrWWWC
Friday, February 24, 2012
Amazon takes a company's e-books out of stores after disagreement
Five thousand of IPG’s books were taken out of the book giant’s Kindle e-book store. Paper versions of IPG’s books are still available on Amazon’s website.
“They decided they didn't like the terms we offered,” Suchomel said of the contract dispute between IPG and Amazon. “And we said, 'We're not going to change,' and they removed [the e-books].”
Would Google hire you? 10 test questions to find out
He said he didn’t feel he could further discuss the disagreement between the two companies.
“Amazon has issues with us talking too much,” Suchomel said.
IPG is the second-biggest distributor of books published independently in the country. Mark Suchomel, president of IPG, told the Chicago Tribune that e-book sales on Amazon only accounted for about 5 percent of the company’s earnings, so there isn’t any possibility that the removal of their e-books will cause them to go out of business.
“If they want to buy our books, they can buy them,” Suchamel said of Amazon. “We are happy to deal with them.”
Amazon didn't return calls for comment, said the Tribune.
“They decided they didn't like the terms we offered,” Suchomel said of the contract dispute between IPG and Amazon. “And we said, 'We're not going to change,' and they removed [the e-books].”
Would Google hire you? 10 test questions to find out
He said he didn’t feel he could further discuss the disagreement between the two companies.
“Amazon has issues with us talking too much,” Suchomel said.
IPG is the second-biggest distributor of books published independently in the country. Mark Suchomel, president of IPG, told the Chicago Tribune that e-book sales on Amazon only accounted for about 5 percent of the company’s earnings, so there isn’t any possibility that the removal of their e-books will cause them to go out of business.
“If they want to buy our books, they can buy them,” Suchamel said of Amazon. “We are happy to deal with them.”
Amazon didn't return calls for comment, said the Tribune.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
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