
Amazon's AbeBooks backs down after booksellers stage global protest - ilamont
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/nov/08/amazon-abebooks-backs-down-after-booksellers-stage-global-protest?CMP=twt_gu
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kevindong
AbeBooks is a great place to buy the non-US versions of textbooks (which are
almost always identical to the US version, but in grayscale rather than in
color).

For instance, on Amazon, the K&R C Programming book goes for $28.52 used,
$61.74 new, or $28.70 for a one semester rental [0]. For a book that hasn't
changed since 1988, these prices are absurd.

While as on AbeBooks, the international edition goes for $10-11 [1].

[0]: [https://www.amazon.com/Programming-Language-2nd-Brian-
Kernig...](https://www.amazon.com/Programming-Language-2nd-Brian-
Kernighan/dp/0131103628)

[1]:
[https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?bi=0&bx=off&c...](https://www.abebooks.com/servlet/SearchResults?bi=0&bx=off&cm_sp=SearchF-
_-
Advtab1-_-Results&ds=30&isbn=9780131103627&recentlyadded=all&sortby=17&sts=t)

~~~
analogmemory
I bought two books for school from them that would have been normally $100
each, for like $30 each. The pages were as thin as a phone book, and had a
Xerox quality. Basically pirate copy

~~~
setquk
Results are somewhat variable yes. I’ve had reprinted scans turn up and
totally trashed books. Success rate is about 3 in 5 though which isn’t bad
considering the failures are quicky refunded.

Some of the eBay sellers are better priced and have better overall outcomes
though due to the very short span that hooky sellers last.

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aezell
I stopped using AbeBooks when I stopped using Amazon. ThriftBooks and
BetterWorldBooks are good alternatives unless you are on AbeBooks for
antiquarian books.

~~~
beauzero
I would encourage people to support ThriftBooks. Used to compete against them
when running KudzuBooks.com. Kudzu went bankrupt shortly after owner sold
AcademicBookServices.com (used K-12 books) to Follett's used k-12 division.
ThriftBooks has been around since the Kudzu days and have continued to run a
tight ship and improve their site with little to no resources. It's good to
see them around. Margins in the remainder business are extremely tight and it
is difficult to get good remaindered stock with the consolidation of
publishing houses and the closing of so many bricks and mortar stores.
Remaindered book = book returned to the publisher who puts a black mark
somewhere on the loose page ends and resells to bargain market (usually
wholesalers) at 5-15% of retail price. They in turn get resold to brick and
mortars for bargain book tables or online (should be sold "Like New" but some
are sold "New" if the publisher forgot to mark the book).

~~~
chasingthewind
I just went to check out thrift books and found something surprising. I looked
up an old childrens book that’s an old favorite of mine and saw a review that
looked really familiar and triggered something in my mind. I went over to
Amazon and found the exact same review...word for word. I wonder what’s going
on here...does Amazon sell review text to other vendors? Is there a public API
for reviews that other sites can use?

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neonate
Another article on this:
[https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/07/technology/amazon-
booksel...](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/11/07/technology/amazon-bookseller-
protest-strike.html)

[http://archive.is/T6ljj](http://archive.is/T6ljj)

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shittyadmin
Many of the books on that site are pirated reprints. Great way to get cheap
textbooks, but it's not surprising that they would attempt to ban some of the
countries often responsible for those.

~~~
bubblethink
I don't think they are pirated per se. More likely, they are
student/international editions.

~~~
chadash
Counterfeits are actually a very big issue in the textbook industry. Anyone
who deals with used textbooks knows this and they need to be very careful to
avoid legal action from publishers. Do a google image search on "counterfeit
textbook examples" and you'll see how many of the counterfeits look pretty
similar to the authentic books (often it's small things like coloring that
give it away).

Obviously textbooks get expensive, but the thing that makes textbook
counterfeiting especially successful is that most consumers who get cheap
counterfeits don't care. The content is usually the same and it's not a status
symbol like an authentic Gucci bag. So as a consumer, there's really not much
difference to you, especially if you got the book for cheap.

Typically, counterfeits are lower quality, but someone who works in the
industry once told me that he's seen counterfeits with _higher quality_
printing than the originals, which makes the real books look like fakes!

~~~
thaumasiotes
> The content is usually the same and it's not a status symbol like an
> authentic Gucci bag.

If the content is the same, in what sense is the book a "counterfeit"? That's
just a copy of the book.

~~~
TazeTSchnitzel
The same way a pirated DVD movie that comes in an identical DVD jewel case to
the original is considered counterfeit.

~~~
thaumasiotes
It... isn't.

~~~
function_seven
What about a $100 US bank note that’s identical to one printed at the US mint,
... but not?

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thaumasiotes
If it's identical to the notes printed at the mint, you're not being cheated
in any way when you accept it; you're getting exactly what's being represented
and exactly what you expect. Again, that's not counterfeit. A $100 bill that
is identical in all relevant respects to all other $100 bills is just a $100
bill.

People are more worried about taking money that _isn 't_ identical to money
that came from the mint. By definition, if it's identical to minted money,
there is no way to tell that it isn't minted money.

~~~
function_seven
“Counterfeit” has everything to do with the provenance of an item. It’s not a
synonym for low quality or “bad copy”.

If I stole a money printing press and began producing $100 bills on my own, I
would be counterfeiting money. Even with the very same equipment that the Mint
would have otherwise used to make the notes. Same atoms and same outcome, but
not authorized.

It’s the same with handbags or books.

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anentropic
Don't mess with the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers!

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lintroller
I was able to find some of my college textbooks new or used in great condition
for far cheaper than my bookstore at AbeBooks, including saving hundreds of
dollars off books within my major if I purchased the international edition.

Hate to see that opportunity removed as an option.

