UPDATE – FEB 5, 2012
We’ve received an email from an author who received an email directly from Amazon mentioning that it is okay to put up an excerpt of your book. Specifically, the email says, “You may offer a sample, excerpt or teaser of your KDP Select-enrolled book on your website, as long as it doesn’t include a substantial portion of your book’s content. Up to about 10% of the book’s content is a reasonable amount.” Continue reading for a full analysis of the issue.
What is KDP Select?
KDP Select is an option for KDP publishers from Amazon. Through KDP Select, for an initial period of 90 days your Digital Book is exclusive to Kindle and is included in the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library Program where it will earn a share of a monthly cash fund when readers borrow it. Also, you can promote your Digital Book as free for up to 5 days during these 90 days.
We have had a few authors asking if it is okay for them to continue to promote their book using BookBuzzr Technologies while on the KDP Select Program. Based on our understanding of the KDP Select terms of service and their FAQ and extensive research on various forums on the Internet, here’ why we (the BookBuzzr team) have concluded that KDP Select DOES NOT affect BookBuzzr Authors. Of course, we expect that you will do your own research and draw your own conclusions. Feel free to jump in the comments section and let us know if we’ve misunderstood something.
Authors who use BookBuzzr technologies DO NOT violate KDP Select Terms of Service
If your book is on the KDP Select program, you are perfectly within your rights to market and promote your book through other sources. For example, you can go ahead and tweet about your book on Twitter. And you can talk about your book on your blog. If you use BookBuzzr technologies to market your book, you are not distributing your book through BookBuzzr or selling your books through BookBuzzr. Therefore, you are not violating Amazon terms of service. So go ahead and continue with your BookBuzzr subscription. It may even help complement your efforts on the KDP Select program.
Distribute Means Giving Away or Selling Your Book in it’s Entirety
The KDP Select FAQ Page states: “When you choose KDP Select for a book, you’re committing to make the digital format of that book available exclusively through KDP. During the period of exclusivity, you cannot distribute your book digitally anywhere else, including on your website, blogs, etc. However, you can continue to distribute your book in physical format, or in any format other than digital. See the KDP Select Terms and Conditions for more information.”
It’s important to understand that distribution refers to the act of giving away or selling your book in it’s entirety on ebook distribution sites such as Smashwords, BookBaby etc. or in the form of PDF or other digital or electronic versions of your ENTIRE (FULL) book.
Giving Away Your Book Excerpt is NOT the Same as Book Distribution
However, when you provide your book excerpt it DOES NOT constitute a violation of KDP Select terms of service. Book excerpts have always been a valid form of book marketing for authors. The BookBuzzr Flipper Widget and Book Sampler is best-suited for book excerpts. If you are part of the KDP Select program, please do not upload your ENTIRE book. But feel free to put up your excerpt.
Amazon’s Exclusivity is for Distribution and Sales Only
Amazon states, “When you include a Digital Book in KDP Select, you give us the exclusive right to sell and distribute your Digital Book in digital format while your book is in KDP Select. During this period of exclusivity, you cannot sell or distribute, or give anyone else the right to sell or distribute, your Digital Book (or content that is reasonably likely to compete commercially with your Digital Book, diminish its value, or be confused with it), in digital format in any territory where you have rights.”
“Sell and distribute” is very different from marketing, promotion and publicity which is what BookBuzzr does.
Putting up Your Book Excerpt on the BookBuzr Flipper Widget DOES NOT violate KDP Select Terms of Service
Putting up an excerpt of your book is different from putting up your whole book. Amazon does not restrict you from promoting your own book via a book excerpt. They don’t want you to put up your entire book on places other than Amazon as it will affect their sales. However, putting up a book excerpt on the BookBuzzr widget will actually help Amazon by driving traffic to Amazon. Having your excerpt up on BookBuzzr does not cause loss of revenues to Amazon since the final sale or distribution of the book happens on the Amazon – Kindle platform itself. If you sell your book on your site then you are in violation of KDP Select terms of service.
BookBuzzr DOES NOT Do eBook Distribution or eBook Sales
We don’t sell books or eBooks. We’re a software technology company that builds technologies for book marketing.
We’ve consciously stayed away from eBook distribution or sales. We do not compete with Amazon or any other eBook distributor or seller.
BookBuzzr only develops technologies for book marketing
Our focus is on helping you promote your book through the power of technology. Some of our technologies are:
– QuickQuiz – to help you to rapidly create fun little quizzes for Facebook
– AuthorPage – a Facebook fan page widget to help you engage with your fans
– Amazon Alerts – a reporting service that gives you information about your book’s Amazon sales rank
– Book Tweeter – a technology that sends out automatic tweets to your followers.
– Flipper Widget – a technology that grabs that attention of visitors to your blog or Facebook page.
– Freado.com – a website where readers can win free books
Conclusion
As an author, you need all the visibility that you can get and BookBuzzr provides you with the highest value for money when it comes to marketing your book using technologies.
