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Exciting News About Goodreads: We're Joining the Amazon Family!
When Elizabeth and I started Goodreads from my living room seven years ago, we set out to create a better way for people to find and share books they love. It's been a wild ride seeing how the company has grown and watching as more than 16 million readers from across the globe have joined Goodreads and connected over a passion for books.
Today I'm really happy to announce a new milestone for Goodreads: We are joining the Amazon family. We truly could not think of a more perfect partner for Goodreads as we both share a love of books and an appreciation for the authors who write them. We also both love to invent products and services that touch millions of people.
I'm excited about this for three reasons:
1. With the reach and resources of Amazon, Goodreads can introduce more readers to our vibrant community of book lovers and create an even better experience for our members.
2. Our members have been asking us to bring the Goodreads experience to an e-reader for a long time. Now we're looking forward to bringing Goodreads to the most popular e-reader in the world, Kindle, and further reinventing what reading can be.
3. Amazon supports us continuing to grow our vision as an independent entity, under the Goodreads brand and with our unique culture.
It's important to be clear that Goodreads and the awesome team behind it are not going away. Goodreads will continue to be the wonderful community that we all cherish. We plan to continue offering you everything that you love about the site—the ability to track what you read, discover great books, discuss and share them with fellow book lovers, and connect directly with your favorite authors—and your reviews and ratings will remain here on Goodreads. And it's incredibly important to us that we remain a home for all types of readers, no matter if you read on paper, audio, digitally, from scrolls, or even stone tablets.
For all of you Kindle readers, there's obviously an extra bonus in this announcement. You've asked us for a long time to be able to integrate your Kindle and Goodreads experiences. Making that option a reality is one of our top priorities.
Our team gets out of bed every day motivated by the belief that the right book in the right hands can change the world. Now Goodreads can help make that happen in an even bigger and more meaningful way thanks to joining the Amazon family. (And if you want to be part of this, please check out our Jobs page for open positions. We've got a lot of hires to make!)
This is an emotional day for me. Goodreads is more than a company to me – it's something that Elizabeth and I created because we wanted it to exist. Since then it has grown a lot and become a place we love working at, full of incredibly smart and passionate people who also believe in our mission. I feel a little like a college graduate – happy to come to this milestone, nostalgic for the past amazing seven years, and incredibly, incredibly, excited for the future.
Otis
P.S. For the more official version of the announcement, here's the press release that went out today.
P.P.S. Please let us know – what integration with Kindle would you love to see the most?
Today I'm really happy to announce a new milestone for Goodreads: We are joining the Amazon family. We truly could not think of a more perfect partner for Goodreads as we both share a love of books and an appreciation for the authors who write them. We also both love to invent products and services that touch millions of people.
I'm excited about this for three reasons:
1. With the reach and resources of Amazon, Goodreads can introduce more readers to our vibrant community of book lovers and create an even better experience for our members.
2. Our members have been asking us to bring the Goodreads experience to an e-reader for a long time. Now we're looking forward to bringing Goodreads to the most popular e-reader in the world, Kindle, and further reinventing what reading can be.
3. Amazon supports us continuing to grow our vision as an independent entity, under the Goodreads brand and with our unique culture.
It's important to be clear that Goodreads and the awesome team behind it are not going away. Goodreads will continue to be the wonderful community that we all cherish. We plan to continue offering you everything that you love about the site—the ability to track what you read, discover great books, discuss and share them with fellow book lovers, and connect directly with your favorite authors—and your reviews and ratings will remain here on Goodreads. And it's incredibly important to us that we remain a home for all types of readers, no matter if you read on paper, audio, digitally, from scrolls, or even stone tablets.
For all of you Kindle readers, there's obviously an extra bonus in this announcement. You've asked us for a long time to be able to integrate your Kindle and Goodreads experiences. Making that option a reality is one of our top priorities.
Our team gets out of bed every day motivated by the belief that the right book in the right hands can change the world. Now Goodreads can help make that happen in an even bigger and more meaningful way thanks to joining the Amazon family. (And if you want to be part of this, please check out our Jobs page for open positions. We've got a lot of hires to make!)
This is an emotional day for me. Goodreads is more than a company to me – it's something that Elizabeth and I created because we wanted it to exist. Since then it has grown a lot and become a place we love working at, full of incredibly smart and passionate people who also believe in our mission. I feel a little like a college graduate – happy to come to this milestone, nostalgic for the past amazing seven years, and incredibly, incredibly, excited for the future.
Otis
P.S. For the more official version of the announcement, here's the press release that went out today.
P.P.S. Please let us know – what integration with Kindle would you love to see the most?
Comments Showing 1,751-1,800 of 2,216 (2216 new)
Not a hippie. GR is a business, as is Amazon. I’m not using those businesses anymore because I don’t agree with them and I’m encouraging others to do the same. That’s the way the market works.
Had a look at Booklikes and was struck immediately by the ads for books for sale at Amazon at the top of my profile page. So much for that! Account deleted.
Yes, Vivl, I saw that and had a similar reaction. I already have an LT account so I'm maintaining that and thinking about www.thereadingroom.com which a friend invited me to some while back. Cautiously maintaining my GR account until I have sight of the new terms & conditions. I notice the question about the precise date of the takeover has not been answered by the PTB (and it shouldn't be a hard one to answer, frankly - they must know!).
Ah, I hadn't had a thorough look, Sarah. Thank you. Looks like I'm stuck with LT then. How frustrating.
While I am happy for your success, what I always enjoyed about Goodreads was that you weren't pushing me to buy anything, and you certainly weren't pushing me to buy anything from a specific retailer. I like Amazon for its convenience, but I definitely don't trust them to keep this site from becoming an all-out sales pitch. Add to that the ridiculous ratings on Amazon and I fear that pretty soon I'll be getting recommendations for books that I have no interest in (50 Shades, anyone?) instead of books that match my preferences. So good for you, but what does it *really* mean for us?
Allie wrote: " Cautiously maintaining my GR account until I have sight of the new terms & conditions."
That was my initial plan as well, but I've come to the conclusion I don't want to stay here with Amazon in control whether or not we see striking changes in terms and conditions from the get go. This is a pleasant site at the moment and I've had a very good time here, and become more attached to it than I imagined I would in just under 2 years of membership, but I can't get past it being owned by Amazon, whose business practices I just cannot trust or support. :(
That was my initial plan as well, but I've come to the conclusion I don't want to stay here with Amazon in control whether or not we see striking changes in terms and conditions from the get go. This is a pleasant site at the moment and I've had a very good time here, and become more attached to it than I imagined I would in just under 2 years of membership, but I can't get past it being owned by Amazon, whose business practices I just cannot trust or support. :(
Otis and Elizabeth,I hope you enjoy the money you've made with this deal. Many of us were with GoodReads beacause it was NOT commercial. Our opinions were real, not "for sale." Now you've cheapened us, made us prostitutes of Amazon.
It's not a feeling I like. My reviews were to be shared with my friends, not sold by you.
Very sadly I close my account. I can only hope that others of my ilk will surface on another site, once again truly INDEPENDENT!
Carol wrote: "Get your hippy heads out of the clouds and realize that money makes the world go around."
Why don't you give that speech to the Amazon employees who have to work in subhuman conditions in Amazon warehouses and logistic centers. Nobody is denying that capitalism is running/ruining the world but some of us still have ideals and I for one will not bend over and take it.
I will delete my account. Not that Goodreads cares about a few dissenters as long as there are enough apathetic people (such as yourself) who don't care about anything - both Amazon and Goodreads will make a decent profit. And that's really all that matters to them.
Why don't you give that speech to the Amazon employees who have to work in subhuman conditions in Amazon warehouses and logistic centers. Nobody is denying that capitalism is running/ruining the world but some of us still have ideals and I for one will not bend over and take it.
I will delete my account. Not that Goodreads cares about a few dissenters as long as there are enough apathetic people (such as yourself) who don't care about anything - both Amazon and Goodreads will make a decent profit. And that's really all that matters to them.
David wrote: "When I wrote my first paperback novel I was determined to get it into Amazon, stocked, as it seemed the right thing to do. I invested in my own writing printing 2,000 copies which I did sell, not m..."Great to hear your story, David. I'm starting to understand more about why there is such a backlash against Amazon. Sounds like we need some 'fair trade' principles (and marketing) in the book industry!
Thank you, David (message 1961)! www.booklikes.com does look like an interesting site. I will register and encourage my other independent-thinking friends to do so also.
David, is there a way to export a list of our "friends" on GR?
Sarah_loves_books wrote: "The Reading Room seemed to offer Amazon as the ONLY place to buy books (well, at least for the books I checked). I really don't need this on a booksite. I can find the places to buy books all on my..."I'm sorry to hear that. But trying to avoid Amazon is like trying to avoid pollution; no way to do it completely in this day and age.
But that doesn't mean I'm going to let Goodreads stick an exhaust pipe down my throat, either! Which is why some of us are discussing alternatives to Goodreads and Amazon over on "Escaping Amazon", at https://plus.google.com/communities/1...
Anyone can join. Right now we're discussing our experiences migrating our GR data to other sites. We're also sharing ideas on places to shop other than Amazon. Unlike this forum, we're not posting at the sufferance of Goodreads/Amazon management over there.
I've been a member of Goodreads for less than six months. I really like the site. I'm going to give it a wait and see before I make any decisions.
Nikki wrote: "*checks date*F***. It's not April Fool's Day. This is real!?"
My reaction as well... so disappointing.
Just tell me that my recommendations list won't suddenly become a list of the books/authors that Amazon are trying to promote and make more money off of, that is my biggest fear with this. I love GR for the open and honest reviews and recs that I get based on what I've read, I really hate the idea of my recs becomming a list of things Amazon are pushing rather than stuff that is suitable to me.
Nancy wrote: "David, is there a way to export a list of our "friends" on GR?"As far as I know, there isn't. But that's a feature I'd vote for!
Somehow, though, I don't think that Amazon will see that as in their interest. Heck, it wouldn't surprise me if they killed off the option of exporting your data, eventually...maybe in a year or two.
The second-best option I can think of is to start setting up "Goodreads Expatriates" groups on other sites. I wish that there was some way to keep all the connections that I had here. But not at the price of allowing Amazon to exploit my reviews.
They exploit far too much already!
I'm not sure if I will be continue using Goodreads, I have a large number of personal and ethical issues with how Amazon has run their ebook business and the lack of respect they have shown for their customers as well as for others in general. This will be taking some thinking on my part.
Vivl wrote: "Peter wrote: I can't find Sumeer's original post and list. Could it perhaps have been deleted?I made a copy. The only difference with the original list is that I removed one that is wholly-owned ..."
Thanks for the list. I missed it first time around
I'm kind of astounded by the level of paranoia going on regarding this acquisition. Amazon is a business. I do sometimes have issues how they run that business, but in general my user experience with them has been highly positive. I have never had a review deleted on Amazon, and I've certainly seen plenty of negative ones, including reviews that influenced my decision of whether or not to purchase a particular item.I can think of a number of ways in which this may benefit GR users who have Kindles. Just for starters, when I click on a list of booksellers for a title I want to buy, Amazon is now at the top of that list, rather than at the bottom under 16 others, at least one of which I'm not sure is actually in business. I buy from Amazon first, not because I'm in love with them, but because I know the download will work, and not bury itself in some obscure part of my computer I have to spend 15 minutes hunting down. They also make it easy to pay. Having my GR 'want to reads' appear automatically on my Amazon wish list would also be fabulous, and I assume that is something that is coming.
I realize that this is not terribly useful to any Goodreads members who refuse to use Amazon on principle, but it's awesomely handy for anyone with a Kindle. By the way, I love my Kindle. It is easy to use and has taken an enormous amount of abuse.
The end benefit to the profound revolution in how books are bought, sold, published, and even read is that it makes written material widely available. I am no longer dependent on what my local booksellers stock, or how they arrange their shelves. I'm old enough to remember when a lot of bookstores either did not carry LGBT titles at all, or buried the handful of titles they did have all over the store, rather than actually having a separate shelf. Amazon lets me buy all kinds of things instantly, when I want them. I don't have to special order them sight unseen from a counter, or hunt through used bookstores for them, or hope that my local bookstore will get them back in.
How many members does BookLikes have? Does anyone know?
And what about rare books that can't be found using the BL search function? I am hesitant to contact them again. They seem to have one answer for all questions "We're working on it."
And what about rare books that can't be found using the BL search function? I am hesitant to contact them again. They seem to have one answer for all questions "We're working on it."
Ska wrote: "How many members does BookLikes have? Does anyone know? And what about rare books that can't be found using the BL search function? I am hesitant to contact them again. They seem to have one answ..."
I don't know. I imagine the number is changing rapidly; they seem to be swamped with Goodreads expatriates, as are many similar sites.
Personally, I'm trying out LibraryThing and BookLikes at the moment. But I won't end up committed to any one book site. At best, I'll regard any of them as merely a temporary home. In the end, it seems that almost everything is for sale.
And I'll maintain copies of all my work on my own personal website, along with my various journals.
As for rare books not listed on BookLikes, I'm embarrassed to admit that so far, I haven't found a rare book of mine that they don't list! But their data seems to be entirely derived from Amazon, which is disturbing. The site owner says they're working on that, if I understood him correctly.
Janosch wrote: ""I'm so very sorry you've made this decision. I understand the motivation, but I cannot but dread the inevitable changes that will come. Goodreads has long been one of the best places for books and..."Cathy wrote: "So another good site succumbs to the lure of the big name...I hope the original purpose of Goodreads won't be lost. If it is, I'll return to pencil/paper to record my reading."
My sentiments exactly.
Interesting to note that out of thousands of Goodreaders,only 360 have come out to"like" this change.
If it ain't broke,please don't try to fix it.
Peter wrote: "Personally, I'm trying out LibraryThing and BookLikes at the moment. But I won't end up committed to any one book site. At best, I'll regard any of them as merely a temporary home. In the end, it seems that almost everything is for sale...."
Thank you for your reply! I must have tried at least 15 different book sites. So far none of them are what I'm looking for. Guess I'll have to go back to pen and paper or an excel spreadsheet. :/
Thank you for your reply! I must have tried at least 15 different book sites. So far none of them are what I'm looking for. Guess I'll have to go back to pen and paper or an excel spreadsheet. :/
Chancelite wrote: "I will stick with www.my-bookclub.com then !"Wow! That's a cool site! Thanks for posting! Is there a way to import books into it?
This is disappointing. I imagine that we will begin seeing hooks into Amazon from our individual Goodreads pages. This raises a number of disturbing questions. Will our reviews and comments become the property of Amazon? Will Amazon have the ability to remove content from our pages that they dislike? I must seriously consider deleting my account and moving the information there elsewhere. Too bad Amazon already has an ownership stake in Librarything. Enjoy the cash Brutus...uhh...I mean Otis.
Here's a rundown of 11 GR alternatives. I'll be updating it as more info on each site comes in...http://blog.thirdscribe.com/2013/03/3...
Ska wrote: "I must have tried at least 15 different book sites. So far none of them are what I'm looking for. Guess I'll have to go back to pen and paper or an excel spreadsheet. :/ "But that's a loss for everyone, Ska! You'll lose feedback on your books and reviews, and others will no longer be able to see them. It's lose/lose.
There's still hope. There may be sites out there that are an acceptable alternative. Yes, LibraryThing seems a bit clunky, and BookLikes has its quirks, but it's far too early to give up entirely.
At the "Escaping Amazon" community we're still looking into the different options. Anyone is welcome to join; you can lurk, comment, or post, just as you wish. And you'll be able to stay in touch with at least some Goodreads expatriates!
It's at https://plus.google.com/communities/1...
Does the situation remind anyone else of 1984? Last year Amazon was the implacable enemy, and we all had to pull together to save Goodreads from their onslaught. Today we're joining their happy family, with not a word about the recent unpleasantness.
"We have always been at war with Eastasia!"
I find use of the word 'family' tends to be fatally ironic when applied companies. It's similar to the way that any country using the word 'democratic' in its name is usually a police state. Let's wait and see. I hope it will be wonderful but unfortunately I'm too cynical to believe that.
Cheers
MTM
M.T. wrote: "I find use of the word 'family' tends to be fatally ironic when applied companies. It's similar to the way that any country using the word 'democratic' in its name is usually a police state. Let'..."
C'mon, corporations are people now, remember? Just drink the Kool-Aid and be happy!
Remember, this is "exciting".
-_-
M.T. wrote: "I find use of the word 'family' tends to be fatally ironic when applied companies. It's similar to the way that any country using the word 'democratic' in its name is usually a police state. Let'..."
A long time ago my old ISP was was acquired by a much larger company. Their home page was revised to say "TIAC is proud to be a member of the PSInet family!"
I couldn't resist working up a parody. Mine said "TIAC is proud to be an abused child in the PSInet family!"
A year or two later, the whole "family" was gone. I even got a call from a reporter who wanted to interview me about the whole thing. Couldn't help him much, I was just an unhappy customer.
The parody homepage is still up; I never bothered to delete it. At this point I think it's all that's left of the TIAC and PSInet of that time, although the TIAC name is now in use for some unrelated purposes.
One lesson to take away from these events is to not become a serf to a single feudal entity, but to distribute the eggs into multiple baskets. Blinded by the convenience and admittedly very good UI, it was easy to fall into a false sense of security (a good three years for me). It's all about trust given and trust taken away. Another lesson learned, thanks!
Bugmenot wrote: "Well, and the fact that buyouts and mergers take a long time. Now consider for a moment what that means."Best post I've seen, and I've read them all here and in the Feedback group. Bugmenot, would you be willing to post this in the Feedback group, or may I have your permission to do so on your behalf? Your post above is very important, there's a different audience participating in the Feedback group and I think everyone should see this post. Thanks for taking the time to write it.
No, that was definitely a very powerful post, Bugmenot, and I think it sums up what a lot of people are feeling. I certainly don't begrudge anyone making money from their work. I just appreciate when people act decently towards others. So far it looks likes Anobii will fit me best. The other sites are all kind of lacking in French-language titles. But I'll try to stick around here until something major changes.
No more working as a librarian for free, though!
Bugmenot wrote: "They are just quickly typed words. Do what you want with them - or polish them up and take them as your own. You're a much better writer than I will ever be."Thanks, reposted there and to my friends. It's exactly the post I've been wishing I had the skill to write if I were better at being able to collect my thoughts. I'm glad also to find out I'm not the only one who thinks GRs was likely already in or very near negotiations to sell GRs when they asked librarians to save their data.
Bugmenot wrote: "Well, and the fact that buyouts and mergers take a long time. Now consider for a moment what that means.Bugmenot,
Very well stated, thank you. All my data is now safely stashed in Amazon's databases, contrary to my wishes, but I will at least delete my profile once I find a new home.
Kate wrote: "And after all the work we did when Amazon pulled their database *sigh*"This would be awesome! I am new to Goodreads, but I know how tired I get of posting reviews to other sites over and over. Linking Twitter, Goodreads, and Amazon would be a tremendous boon.
Thank you, Dan, the "issues" I've heard on Twitter now are making more sense to me. Again, as a new user, I'm not very familiar with everything that GR has to offer yet (sadly for me, especially if there are to be any negative changes). It seems there may be a few apologies, as well as tremendous thanks, owed to all those who have worked so hard to make GR great. Compensation is always good. It might help if Amazon even offered some sort of book bucks for them or some such, to further foster goodwill, as you mentioned, Dan.
Again, I'm just a newbie, so know less than nothing, so forgive me if I'm a frothing idiot.
UGH... this sucks!! Way to put another nail in the coffin of independent books stores. Really Goodreads I expected better.....
I loved GoodReads for all the reasons I hate Amazon. I use it, but do so guardedly. I have to agree with the others who feel that our neighborhood book site has just been eaten up by the cold, conglomerate monster. I'd rather post twice than have another connection with Amazon. This place was a family. Now, it's not. I'd have gladly paid for an account here to keep it unbiased and free from sockpuppets. Color me beyond sad.
Re Bugmenot's statement above: here's my take (good, bad or indifferent)...It is true that the merger and acquisition of 2 companies is a long drawn-out process. Having gone through them, they look a lot like those junior-high relationships in which you're going together one day, you're not the next day, and then suddenly the following week you're back together again or pretending each other doesn't exist. And six months later you could be going steady, or not. Often it actually doesn't look like a done deal until the middle of the night on the last day of negotiations, and even then you're holding your breath. So, yes, the owners of GoodReads knew there was keen interest in their company from Amazon and quite possibly other corporations as well because GoodReads has been so successful. Whether anything would come of it or not is always a crap shoot and they'd have been complete fools to broadcast it. What seems to be getting lost in this debate is that they are the owners of GoodReads and GoodReads is a company, not a playground or hobby. It also isn't a company that belongs to anyone who visits the site or posts on the site, including those of us who are authors, publishers, librarians or book reviewers. It belongs to the owners, not us even though we may all feel proprietary toward it. That we publish content on the site benefits the owners but they aren't shafting us when they decide to sell their company or merge it with another one. That's their right as the owners. We voluntarily chose to put our content on this site for our own purposes, and we can choose to continue to do so or not - that's our choice. It isn't our business, literally or figuratively, what the owners decide to do with their company. How Amazon will or won't change GoodReads will only become clear over time, possibly as long as 1-2 years post-acqusition if it's like a lot of dot.com mergers.
Ads already? Sent a few personal comments out today and a dinosaur ad from the 40 mile away Jacksonville Zoo comes up and blinds my typing area. Is anyone else getting ads in places where they never seen before?
Tried to opt out and did but still comes up.
Thanks for any help, folks.
Cathy wrote: "Ads already? Sent a few personal comments out today and a dinosaur ad from the 40 mile away Jacksonville Zoo comes up and blinds my typing area. Is anyone else getting ads in places where they ..."
AdBlock Plus is your friend. :-)
Seriously, it's like a whole different internet with it. I had actually forgotten that the web had advertising!
That said, I'd be very interested to hear if GRAmazon starts cramming ads into the site.
This is FANTASTIC. I love Goodreads, I love Amazon, and I love my kindle. (Best. Birthday. Present. Ever.) Ok, Ok,Ok,how to make this all work? Easier links to purchase - right now I have to do too many steps to get from a Goodreads recommendation to purchasing for my kindle. Can I set this up as a preference somehow? that I prefer to buy from Amazon for my kindle? (Other people could configure it differently of course.) Love the idea that reviews will be available both places. Love that it could automatically post to my good reads account when I buy a book (unless I tell it not to because I really don't need folks knowing how many trashy vampire books I read.) How about book clubs? Or how about a rewards type program? How about a reading challenge/book race? This is so exciting. I can't wait to see what you guys come up with.
I am deeply troubled by this news. I have watched as Amazon has tried to squeeze out independent booksellers and have been alarmed by Amazon's employment practices (google: Financial Times's article: Amazon Unpacked). I have always admired Goodreads' independence and have been a heavy user of Goodreads, but I will now move my books and reviews to another venue. I am not interested in my views being used as marketing tools. I wonder whether Amazon will be able to change or delete our Goodreads reviews as it does reviews on its own site? This news makes me very sad. There does not seem to be many ways left to preserve authentic literary conversation.
Bugmenot wrote: "http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/26/bus...This is why nerds reviewing books (honestly and out of passion for readin..."
I think yours is my most favourite review of the situation, Bugmenot :)
I am not a shill or an employee of Amazon. Get your hippy heads out of the clouds and realize that money makes the world go around. After listening to a friend complain about his Nook (and he was in the States) where I have zero problems with my Kindle and I live in Australia, I can only say that what works sells. I had no idea that GoodReads was "just a bunch of friends who like books" when I joined it. I just find your recommendations and reviews better than Amazon's since they have only my purchases to go on, not every book I ever read. I know I'll get flamed for this but I don't think I am going to over the managers' decidion. It's their right. Go start another group if you don't like this one.