Smashwords CEO Considers What Amazon Hachette Dispute Means For Indie Authors

By Dianna Dilworth 

smashwords304Mark Coker, the founder of the self-publishing site Smashwords, has given a lot of thought to the Amazon Hachette negotiation troubles.

In a blog post about the issue, Coker mulls what this battle means for indie authors. Here is an excerpt:

The dispute with Hachette foreshadows what comes next for indie ebook authors at Amazon who have grown comfortable to KDP’s 70% royalty rates. Think about my divide and conquer reference above.  Indies are already divided and conquered at Amazon, but most don’t realize this.  These indies all have direct-upload relationships with Amazon.  They don’t have the collective bargaining power of a large publisher to advocate on their behalf.  As the unfolding events indicate, it’s questionable if even a large publisher has leverage over Amazon.