The Authors United group has submitted a formal request to the DoJ, stating that Amazon has repeatedly blocked or limited the sale of thousands of books on its website, sold some books below cost to gain market share and tried to force customers to buy books from its own imprints, rather than from other customers.
The list of authors includes Scott Turow and Nora Roberts. Ursula K Le Guin, best-selling author and Amazon critic, said she feared Amazon had amassed too much influence over publishers and authors. Defenders of Amazon have said its self-publishing platform allows unknown authors to get wide exposure.
Amazon is the largest single bookseller in the US, thought to control some 40 percent of the new book market and almost two-thirds of the e-book market.
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