Amazon has today announced that from June 19, all seven Harry Potter books – in English, French, Italian, German and Spanish – will be coming to Kindle Owners’ Lending Library (KOLL).
We reported back in March that Harry Potter was finally arriving in digital format through Pottermore.com, and although they were available on the Kindle, Amazon’s agreement was that it won’t sell the Harry Potter Kindle books directly. Amazon has purchased an exclusive license from JK Rowling’s Pottermore to make the addition of these titles possible, though it’s worth stressing here that Amazon still won’t be selling the books directly.
The Kindle Owners’ Lending Library is one of the benefits of Amazon Prime membership — in addition, Prime members also tap in to free 2-day shipping on items, as well unlimited streaming of more than 17,000 movies and TV episodes. The Kindle Owners’ Lending Library has grown to over 145,000 books that can be borrowed – for free – as frequently as once a month, with no due dates.
“We’re absolutely delighted to have reached this agreement with Pottermore,” says Jeff Bezos, founder and CEO of Amazon.com. “This is the kind of significant investment in the Kindle ecosystem that we’ll continue to make on behalf of Kindle owners. Over a year, borrowing the Harry Potter books, plus a handful of additional titles, can alone be worth more than the $79 cost of Prime or a Kindle. The Kindle Owners’ Lending Library also has an innovative feature that’s of great benefit for popular titles like Harry Potter – unlimited supply of each title – you never get put on a waiting list.”
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The final Harry Potter movie hit cinemas last year, and Pottermore looks set to keep the Harry Potter brand ticking over nicely. The brand is thought to be worth in excess of $15bn, and after resisting making her work available in digital form for years, March’s announcement was a welcome one for fans of the boy wizard series.
Pottermore sold around $5m worth of Harry Potter eBooks in its first month, and if this rate stays constant for the next year, would mean a whopping $60m would be secured in the first year.
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