10 signatures reached
To: Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and Andy Jassy
Amazon: Let kids access books!
With the pandemic, millions of kids across the country cannot access school and local libraries, cutting them off from physical books when they need it most. Ebooks and audiobooks can fill the gap, but the world’s largest and most profitable ebook publisher is blocking access. Amazon needs to let kids access books!
Why is this important?
Amazon controls the majority of America’s book distribution but fails to do what every other major publisher does: sell e-books and audiobooks to public libraries where kids can access them for free on apps. Amazon doesn’t just sell books, it publishes them -- including thousands of books for kids and teens and many award-winning titles. However, Amazon has refused to sell any of their e-books or audiobooks to public libraries.
Shame on Amazon for undermining libraries in order to sell more books. Amazon has raked in hundreds of billions during the pandemic, with CEO Jeff Bezos 80% richer than he was a year ago! To put it mildly, the pandemic has been a windfall for this company and its CEO. Children, on the other hand, have had school and their entire lives shut down. They need access to books more than ever.
Tell Amazon to stop stonewalling America’s libraries and give kids access to books