Amazon, Target, Walmart Limit Sales of Heavily Discounted Books
The Wall Street Journalreports that Amazon.com, Target and Walmart are limiting sales of the the top 10 hottest book pre-orders. The retailers are engaged in a price war with book prices down to $9 for some of the most coveted hardcovers. The WSJ says the retailers are losing money on the books, so they are limiting the number of copies customers can buy to prevent other booksellers from buying lots of copies and reselling them.
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. has limited its online customers to two copies each of certain bargain books. Amazon.com Inc. has a three-copy maximum on certain discounted titles and Target Corp. has a five-copy limit online.
The price war involves the top 10 hottest book pre-orders. Under the promotion, the three retailers are selling the yet-to-be-released titles, including books by Stephen King, John Grisham, Dean Koontz and James Patterson, at around $9 online, a substantial discount from their list prices of $22 to $35. Walmart.com, for example, is offering Mr. Koontz's thriller "Breathless" for $8.98, 68% off the cover price, while Target.com has it at $8.99 and Amazon charges $9.
Arsen Kashkashian, head buyer at the Boulder Book Store, told the WSJ that he was planning on buying 70 copies of Barbara Kingsolver's The Lacuna from Walmart.com, Target.com or Amazon, because their prices are "more than $5 cheaper than what we can get it for from the publisher, Harper."
The means Amazon, Target and Walmart are probably losing about $5 a book unless they have a bulk deal with the publisher for less than what small bookstores are charged. The cheap hardcovers are a great deal for readers while they last.
The Wall Street Journal 
