With millions of Kindles bought (and many gifted) this holiday
season, authors can earn a share of both the regular monthly fund and
the bonus every time their book is borrowed from the Kindle Owners’
Lending Library on Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de and Amazon.fr
In the first full year of KDP Select, Amazon will pay authors more
than $7 million from the KDP Select fund; over 500 KDP Select books have
reached the top 100 Kindle best seller lists around the world
SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 29, 2012--
(NASDAQ:AMZN)—Amazon.com, Inc. today announced that a bonus of $1.5
million has been added to the KDP Select global fund this holiday
season. This is on top of the regular monthly fund during the
three-month period from December-February. December’s regular monthly
fund is $700,000, plus $700,000 of the $1.5 million holiday bonus will
be paid out for December, doubling the total amount available to authors
in December to $1.4 million. The remainder of the $1.5 million bonus
will be paid on top of the regular fund in January and February as well.
Authors worldwide can earn a share of the total global fund every time
their book is borrowed from the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library on
Amazon.com, Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.de and Amazon.fr, and reach more
readers than ever before.
“This holiday season, millions of customers will open new Kindles, and
if they’re Amazon Prime members they can borrow a book from the Kindle
Owners’ Lending Library for free. The unusual thing about KDP Select is
that when this happens authors get paid. With record Kindle sales
worldwide, and the recent expansion of the lending library to Europe, we
expect the number of books borrowed this holiday season to increase
significantly,” said Russ Grandinetti, Vice President of Kindle Content.
“We’ve seen authors experience incredible success with KDP Select – in
only a year it’s become commonplace to see KDP Select books on our best
seller list.”
KDP Select was introduced in December 2011 to enable independent authors
using KDP to reach the growing audience of millions of Amazon Prime
members and earn more money through the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library.
Here’s how it works: if a KDP author or publisher enrolls any of their
books in KDP Select, which may be done in 90-day increments during which
their books must be exclusive to the Kindle Store, those books are
eligible to be included in the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library. They can
then earn a share of the global fund every time their book is borrowed,
and borrows from the lending library count toward a book’s sales rank on
Amazon. Authors can enroll any of their titles, including their full
catalog. They also have access to a self-service promotional tool which
gives them the option to offer their enrolled titles for free for up to
five days every 90 days, which many authors have found to be a great way
to engage more readers and find new audiences.
First-Year Milestones
KDP Select has proven to be an entirely new growth opportunity for
authors and publishers. Milestones over the past year include:
-
After enrolling in KDP Select, over 500 books have reached the top 100
Kindle best seller lists around the world, including “Stop the
Wedding!” by Stephanie Bond and “The Unwanted Wife” by Natasha Anders.
-
KDP authors will have earned more than $7 million from the KDP Select
global fund through November, on top of increased royalties from paid
sales.
-
KDP Select books have been purchased, borrowed from the Kindle Owners’
Lending Library, or downloaded for free through KDP Select promotions
over 200 million times.
Author Successes
During the past year, authors have experienced incredible success after
enrolling books in KDP Select. Here’s what some of them are saying:
-
Andrew E. Kaufman is the author of “The Lion, the Lamb, the
Hunted,” one of the most-borrowed independently-published books in the
US Kindle Owners’ Lending Library. “Traditional publishing told me
that my dream would never come true – KDP Select not only told me it
could, they made it a reality. From hundreds of rejections, to
hundreds of thousands of sales, the numbers tell the story. KDP has
helped me live the dream.”
-
Carolyn McCray, author of paranormal romance novels, historical
thrillers and mysteries, has earned more than $45,000 from the KDP
Select fund since joining the program a year ago. “KDP Select is an
author’s workhorse. There is no better marketing tool out there to
launch a book and help it grow. Recently KDP Select helped propel one
of my books, ‘Plain Jane: Brunettes Beware,’ into the Top 20 Kindle
best seller list. As I always say, you have to play to win and KDP
Select is by far the best game in town.”
-
Joel Goldman is a best-selling thriller/mystery writer who has
earned more than $20,000 from the KDP Select fund to date. “In
December 2011, KDP Select changed everything. The combination of free
giveaways and the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library helped my sales take
off like a rocket – both were instrumental in the growth of my
business because they enabled me to reach thousands of readers who
might not otherwise have considered buying my books. I've heard from
many readers who've told me how glad they are to have had the chance
to discover me. None of that could have happened without KDP.”
-
Martin Crosbie is the author of “My Temporary Life,” and after
enrolling it in KDP Select he earned over $45,000 in one month from
paid sales and loans combined – a huge increase from the $100 he
earned the prior two months when his book was not enrolled in the
program. “It’s really simple: without Amazon, and more specifically
KDP Select, I would still be receiving rejection letters from agents
and publishers. I tried releasing my book through other outlets and
tried numerous ways to promote it but nothing has come anywhere close
to the opportunities that KDP Select has given me. I have readers
anxiously waiting for my next novel, and, I never get tired of saying
this, I’m a full-time writer.”
Authors can learn more about KDP Select and enroll their books now at http://kdp.amazon.com/self-publishing/KDPSelect.
To learn more about the Kindle Owners’ Lending Library, visit www.amazon.com/kindleownerslendinglibrary.
About Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle,
opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth’s
Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most
customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything
they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the
lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of
unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as Books;
Movies, Music & Games; Digital Downloads; Electronics & Computers; Home
& Garden; Toys, Kids & Baby; Grocery; Apparel, Shoes & Jewelry; Health &
Beauty; Sports & Outdoors; and Tools, Auto & Industrial. Amazon Web
Services provides Amazon’s developer customers with access to
in-the-cloud infrastructure services based on Amazon’s own back-end
technology platform, which developers can use to enable virtually any
type of business. Kindle Paperwhite is the most-advanced e-reader ever
constructed with 62% more pixels and 25% increased contrast, a patented
built-in front light for reading in all lighting conditions, extra-long
battery life, and a thin and light design. The new latest generation
Kindle, the lightest and smallest Kindle, now features new, improved
fonts and faster page turns. Kindle Fire HD features a stunning custom
high-definition display, exclusive Dolby audio with dual stereo
speakers, high-end, laptop-grade Wi-Fi with dual-band support,
dual-antennas and MIMO for faster streaming and downloads, enough
storage for HD content, and the latest generation processor and graphics
engine—and it is available in two display sizes—7” and 8.9”. The
large-screen Kindle Fire HD is also available with 4G wireless, and
comes with a groundbreaking $49.99 introductory 4G LTE data package. The
all-new Kindle Fire features a 20% faster processor, 40% faster
performance, twice the memory, and longer battery life.
Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com,
www.amazon.co.uk,
www.amazon.de,
www.amazon.co.jp,
www.amazon.fr,
www.amazon.ca,
www.amazon.cn,
www.amazon.it,
and www.amazon.es.
As used herein, “Amazon.com,” “we,” “our” and similar terms include
Amazon.com, Inc., and its subsidiaries, unless the context indicates
otherwise.
Forward-Looking Statements
This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning
of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the
Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Actual results may differ significantly
from management's expectations. These forward-looking statements involve
risks and uncertainties that include, among others, risks related to
competition, management of growth, new products, services and
technologies, potential fluctuations in operating results, international
expansion, outcomes of legal proceedings and claims, fulfillment center
optimization, seasonality, commercial agreements, acquisitions and
strategic transactions, foreign exchange rates, system interruption,
inventory, government regulation and taxation, payments and fraud. More
information about factors that potentially could affect Amazon.com's
financial results is included in Amazon.com's filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including its most recent Annual
Report on Form 10-K and subsequent filings.
Source: Amazon.com, Inc.
Amazon.com, Inc.
Media Hotline, 206-266-7180
www.amazon.com/pr
