Bookshop.org has generated £2 million (about $2.7 million) to date for its 500 affiliated independent bookshops in the U.K. The Bookseller reported that between Black Friday and the end of the year, book sales totaled £1 million (about $1.4 million), "with more than 2,500 orders using its newly launched gift wrapping service, and almost 1,000 gift cards sold in just over a month."
Nicole Vanderbilt, managing director of Bookshop.org UK, commented: "We believe readers should go into an indie bookshop whenever they can--there is simply nothing else like it, but when they can't, there is a better way to buy books online. By choosing Bookshop.org for their holiday book shopping, readers have generated over £2 million in incremental profit for these amazing independent bookshops. This is a testament to the fact that there's a place for ethical shopping in online book-buying. We are looking forward to supporting independent booksellers throughout 2022 and to help them get great titles in the hands of their customers."
Booksellers Association managing director Meryl Halls added: "This £2 million milestone is a remarkable achievement by Bookshop.org and the booksellers who use the platform. Bookshop.org has proven itself a true friend to independent booksellers over its first year, and is a genuine alternative to Amazon for those book-buyers who want to support indie bookshops online, often from a distance and often in pursuit of a more ethical shopping decision."
"We know the positive impacts of the income generated by Bookshop.org for some of our smaller booksellers, and it's been a welcome lifeline for many, used in conjunction, often, with the bookshop's own e-commerce offer. We congratulate the team at Bookshop.org on this significant achievement."
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The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has filed a case with the Federal Court against Booktopia, alleging the online bookseller made "false or misleading representations to consumers about their rights to refunds and other remedies for faulty or damaged goods," Books + Publishing reported.
In a statement, the ACCC said that on Booktopia's website between January 10, 2020, and November 2, 2021, the company allegedly "represented that consumers had to notify it of a faulty, damaged or incorrect product within two days of delivery to have a right to a refund or other remedy, and that consumers had no right to refunds on certain products, including digital content and ebooks, in any circumstances."
ACCC chair Rod Sims said: "Consumers who buy digital products or buy products online have the same rights as those who shop in physical stores. Australian consumers have a right to refund, repair or replacement for goods that do not meet their consumer guarantee rights which apply for a reasonable period, and no business can exclude, limit or modify those rights.... Booktopia's conduct may have caused consumers not to seek a refund, replacement or repair for faulty digital products, books and other goods in circumstances where the Australian Consumer Law gave them a right to do so."
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The International Publishers Association has issued a statement of support for Penguin Random House Peru, its CEO, Jéronimo Pimentel, and author Christopher Acosta, following a defamation judgment on Monday, January 10, that sentenced all three to $100,000 fines, and the CEO and author to suspended two-year prison sentences.
"Defamation cases are used to silence authors and publishers," said Kristenn Einarsson, chair of the IPA's Freedom to Publish committee. "The severity of this judgement and its inclusion of the CEO of a publishing house will cast a dark shadow over freedom of expression and the freedom to publish in Peru. The international publishing community stands in full support of the publisher and author in their appeal."
The defamation case was brought by Peruvian businessman and politician César Acuña following the publication of the unauthorized biography Plata como cancha (Money Like Popcorn). According to reports in El Pais (Mexico), the case concerned 30 passages in the book, released in February 2021 and now in its seventh edition. The book will remain available. --Robert Gray