The New York Center for Indie Publishing’s website just published an “after the dust has settled” look at the Amazon-BookSurge gambit and public relations fiasco. The most fascinating aspect of the story is Lloyd Jassin’s speculation that:
“If I had to guess, I’d say in the next 24-months Google buys Ingram (Googlegram?) for its digital group assets (including Lightning Source), and it out-Amazons Amazon by creating the ultimate digital warehouse/distributor in the sky.
If Google were to exhibit digital favoritism, it would steer book buyers to its wholly owned and super-efficient Lightning Source imprint. Amazon owns the online store. Google owns the web. Amazon merchandises books. Google sells them contextually. Balance is restored to the planet.”
Meanwhile, the Washington Sate Attorney General’s office has given up on the Amazon/Booksurge antitrust suit saying “It appears that the markets involved are national in scope. Thus, it may be more appropriate to refer this matter to one of the federal antitrust agencies for review.” Angela Hoy over at Writer’s Weekly is outraged, and asks “Was the Washington State Attorney General’s Office Bamboozled.”
More as this story develops.