Amazon has launched a new program called Kindle MatchBook that allows customers to purchase a digital version of a print book they purchased new on the site for a fraction of what it'd cost otherwise. Pricing for e-book versions range from free up to $2.99, we're told.
In the event that a publisher has enrolled a particular book in the program, you can nab a digital version of a physical book you purchased on Amazon dating back to 1995 - the same year the site went online. The service makes it easy to review your book purchase history so you don't have to manually revisit your entire order history to weed out just books.
For consumers, it's an easy and cheap way to add to their Kindle library which itself affords a high level of convenience. Authors and publishers, on the other hand, get to make a little extra money as secondary purchases from books they've already sold. It's really a win / win for everyone involved.
The service was initially unveiled early last month with just over 10,000 participating titles. Since then, a number of publishers including Amazon Publishing, Chronicle Books, HarperCollins, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Marvel have signed up to participate. At present, more than 70,000 books are available through MatchBook. That's not really a lot when you stop and think about it but Amazon says more titles are being added each day.