If you want to send a file to your Kindle, particularly if you’re an author or publisher who wants to check it for formatting or proofreading, Amazon offers a great service where you can just email a file in a generous range of formats – HTML, Word documents, etc. – to your Kindle. The file is run through their conversion process, and then magically appears on your Kindle via Whispernet.
For a long time, Amazon claimed that there would be a $0.10 fee, but it was in fact free. A couple of months ago, I transferred a file, and got a receipt from Amazon, charging me a whopping $0.15. Okay, sure, not a big deal.
Then last night, I transferred another file (I don’t do this very often): the charge was $0.30. Hmmm.
Now, I know you’re probably thinking, “What are you whining about, you dork? It’s only thirty cents!”
Well, my concern isn’t with the price itself – $0.30 isn’t a big deal for me, as I don’t transfer files very often. The issue is that, so far as I am aware, Amazon hasn’t announced this price increase (I could be wrong, but I don’t recall seeing anything), plus it’s a 100% increase over the last one.
And that gets us back to Amazon’s very lackluster customer service performance regarding Kindle publishing (at least if you’re not a major publisher), which is far below the customers service experiences we’ve had for the Kindle reader itself (Amazon ranks A+ in my book for that). I don’t mind Amazon charging me for services rendered – as long as the price is relatively reasonable – but I do mind them not telling me about pricing changes that can have an effect on me. And there may be folks out there who transfer files a lot, and that thirty cents can add up pretty quick.
So, Amazon, please just let us know what’s coming down the pike, okay?
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#1 by Leslie on July 25th, 2009 - 5:36 pm
How big was the file, Mike? They are pricing them by size now. I have transferred a few that have cost 45 cents.
L
#2 by Michael R. Hicks on July 25th, 2009 - 9:19 pm
Leslie – It was right at 1 megabyte, for the one that cost $0.30. I can’t remember how big the other one was that cost $0.15. I suppose that makes sense – did you see where that was announced? I obviously missed it!
Thanks!
#3 by KS on July 31st, 2009 - 7:38 am
Their pricing is mentioned here — don’t know of an announcement, though..
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=200140600