Bettie's Books

Amazon vs. Suppliers: Demands on Disney, HarperCollins Prep

The dispute between Amazon and Disney that became public over the weekend--and includes no preorders on Disney movies--is over more than pricing, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Citing "a person with knowledge of the matter," the Journal said Amazon wants Disney to pay the difference when Amazon meets below-cost offers to consumers from bricks-and-mortar stores like Wal-Mart.

The dispute "also encompasses promotion and product placement on the Amazon website," the paper said.

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A Forbes story called "HarperCollins Continues to Prepare for Battle with Amazon" put the publisher's many recent moves in the context of preparation for negotiations with Amazon "sometime in the next year." The company, Forbes said, has been "taking steps to build and strengthen alternate retail channels, grow in size and create new business lines both to bolster its existing position in the market and protect its future."

The moves include its purchase of Harlequin, the launch of a consumer c-commerce website, distribution of e-books through Scribd and Oyster, experimenting with bundling print and e-books--and yesterday's announcement about increasing marketing money for independent bookstores (see story above).