[PhoenixS]

No it wasn't. That was the we are taking down your book email. In the top they referenced another email that was never sent. At least I didnt get one. You'd think warning for 4 titles would be noticed, if they were sent...

Did you not receive mails like the one the other author got in the other thread (referenced above) where you're also commenting, Holly? Because the way you state it in the OP -- that they're asking for proof you're you -- it doesn't sound at all like an extortion scheme like Becca was a target of. It sounds like you overlooked or simply decided you didn't need to respond to the emails they sent to you.

I've gotten and dealt with a gajillion of those copyright verifications since I've published over 100 books by 4 authors with multiple publishers and multiple versions of everything they've done, as well as 36 box sets with anywhere from 5 to 10 authors per set. For the boxes, I forward the Letters of Agreement, and for everything else, I send along an email as requested within the time frame asked. It's a minor hassle to search for and forward the LoAs, but the other verifications take all of 1 minute to respond to. Fail to respond and the bots pull the books, I would imagine. I haven't not responded to find out.

I'm confused as to what kind of correspondence you received. It *sounds* like the same verification emails I've been getting for years. Are you packaging your books into boxes--your own or others? That's often a trigger. And it's bots handling this for the most part. And random. I've had box sets sail through with no verification required until I made a change to the price or metadata, then BAM, there's the verification request after the title's been up for weeks or months. Then when the box authors make changes to their single titles that might have been up for years, they'll willy-nilly get emails too. I've even had boxes targeted multiple times.

Do you not have a phone number to call KDP? I mean even *I* have been given a number to call. Otherwise, what's your rep doing?

 

[PhoenixS]

She says she "received no warning, no notice--nothing." That said, it's worth mentioning that the notification KDP sent me when Nolander was taken down did land in my spam folder.

If the books weren't pulled down in the Great Keywords Cleanse that just hit a bunch of folk -- several bestsellers, too, that I personally know who got hit -- then, because Holly is saying it's over copyright, there are two likely reasons that might happen. 1) A DMCA notice was filed. But she's not saying the emails said anything about a DMCA. When your book got tagged, the email in your spam folder was clear on that count, wasn't it, IIRC? So, 2) it's most likely a rights verification thing. If it wasn't a DMCA notice, then why on earth would Amazon willy-nilly pull down not just *a* book, but 4? There's no precedent for that -- at least none I've been privy to. But there is tons of precedent for rights verification mails being sent out with a 5-day deadline. It's certainly possible those mails wound up in spam. I'm simply suggesting there was effort made on Amazon's part to contact her. Because I've not failed to receive the over 50 or so of them I've been sent.

If someone targeted her books, Amazon wouldn't be coy about saying that's what happened, right? They weren't coy with you. But it *feels* like Holly is being coy with us, bringing extortion into the conversation when it doesn't seem Amazon is saying it was a DMCA thing at all.

So, I'll ask right out: Holly, what did the emails you receive notifying you the books had been taken down actually say?

 

[PhoenixS]

What I fear whenever I see this sort of thing is that it will happen to me. I'm a non US citizen and hence have no rights. Over here, we don't have a proper certification thing for copyright. We have the British Library and 5 copyright "offices" that hold copies of our paper books, but we don't get a reg number or certificate. When asked "You don't need it, you wrote it, you own it."

I'm told I could register in the US, but as Becca said, the good guy AND the bad guy have to come to "terms" and email KDP to say it's sorted. What BS is that?

If anyone needs yet another reason to NOT be exclusive with anyone, let alone Amazon, this bollocks has go to be it.

Well, actually, you should blame the U.S. Congress and not Amazon for the BS. There are certain "safe harbors" that service providers are afforded under the Act. And certain steps that Amazon is required -- by law -- to take. Here's a nice quasi-layman's breakdown of the provider's pertinent responsibilities in regard to Notice and Take-down:
http://digital-law-online.info/lpdi1.0/treatise34.html

ETA: Bear in mind that there is no evidence that Holly's issue has to do with any DMCA infringement claims. This, right now, is a SIDE DISCUSSION to the OP's issue.

 

[PhoenixS]

Once it all gets sorted Holly, perhaps grounds for suing Zon for lost income - specially since you are in a true business relationship with them through their actually publishing you oin their own label? Might set a precedent. You could crowdfund to finance the action. I'm sure many many of us would be interested to see the outcome.

At the very least - perhaps start a public petition directed to Jeff. https://www.change.org/start-a-petition
Anyone of us could do it but it makes more sense if a heavy hitter who also got hit (no pun) takes lead.

Why would she do this? If it was someone who filed a DMCA against her, then Amazon acted as required by law. She would need to challenge the law, not Amazon. But nowhere does she say she filed any kind of DMCA counter-claim, as is also required by law as the first step in challenging an alleged infringement. So it doesn't really add up that's what's at the heart of the issue.

Also, to be told, "They then said if I did it again, I'd be suspended," wouldn't make sense in a DMCA infringement. Did what again? Had someone file a DMCA against one of her titles? No. Nothing in this is like what happened with Becca.

So it sounds like there was some behavior happening that was on Holly's side to control. Like the authors who had their titles temporarily removed for using words some of them didn't realize were no-no words in their keywords, such as 'free' and 'Kindle'.

Amazon is also within its rights to remove books at its discretion. Does Amazon sue me for unpublishing box sets that are still selling well? No. We're in a mutually "at will" contract.

So what are you actually advocating she use as the basis of a law suit?

 

[PhoenixS]

Anybody know if Holly has gotten this resolved yet? I'd like to blog about it as a heads-up to other authors, but I'd like to know if she got it sorted.

It appears she's removed all mention of the issue from her FB page and has been silent on the subject since.

One might wonder at that move as well as the lack of press about the matter.