There've been rumblings for a while about the possibility of Amazon launching an ebook rental service - but according to a report in the Wall Street Journal (which is, in turn, "according to people familiar with the matter"), Amazon is now "talking with book publishers about launching a Netflix Inc.-like service for digital books, in which customers would pay an annual fee to access a library of content."
The whole thing feels a bit Chinese whispers at the minute (who are these "people"? How did they get so "familiar"?), but taking the enigmatic sources at face value for just a second, it does sound as if something may perhaps be in the offing. Allegedly – allegedly! – Amazon is looking into offering a subscription library service to members of its paid-for Prime program, which currently offers free next-day delivery and film and TV on demand to its members, for a fixed monthly fee. The service would be US-only to begin with, it seems, but it's a safe bet that we'd see it over here in the UK in a matter of months if it takes off.
Well, gosh. Quite apart from the fact that this marks another move in Amazon's growing domination of the online book trade – a subject which has given the Society of Authors, among others, pause – there's also the small matter of what this would mean for libraries. If I were a librarian, I confess, I'd be putting the career-change plan into action just about now. Assuming Amazon can inveigle publishers into buying into the service (by no means a given), I can't see how it won't sound the final knell for bricks-and-mortar libraries – even academic ones. If you can "borrow" the ebook instantly from your living room, why would you bother schlepping into town to pick it up in person? It's a super-smart move on the part of the company, but the real-world fallout could be extensive.
No knowing where this is going until the "people familiar with the matter" deign to divulge further, but meanwhile, it's certainly food for thought.
