Amazon Publishing goes back to basics with Kindle Serials

zdnet-rachel-king-amazon-event-001 — Credit: Rachel King, ZDNet

SANTA MONICA, CALIF. -- Amazon unveiled some new Kindles during an invite-only media event at a former airplane hanger in Southern California on Thursday morning, but CEO Jeff Bezos acknolwedged a demographic that has hugely benefitted from the platform: self-publishing authors.

For example, out of the top 100 selling Kindle books, 27 of them are self-published.

So far, the Kindle Singles program has done well enough with 3.5 million digital copies sold, and 35 have reached the top 50. Amazon Publishing is hoping to build upon that with the introduction of Kindle Serials.

Touted to be automatic and seamless, Kindle Serials means that readers only have to buy into a series once and they'll received all future episodes.

But really, the concept of stories told and published in a serial format is a tried-and-true method in books, newspapers and magazines. Amazon is simply just putting a new spin on book subscriptions and pushing it forward with its existing self-publishing platform.

To further prove that, Amazon is offering a freebie by re-issuing two books from Charles Dickens in the same serialized format in which they were originally published.

"It's going to be a very interesting experience," Bezos remarked. There are already eight different book franchises lined up for Kindle Serials, including a "yoga murder mystery," which Bezos joked is the beginning of a new genre.

All singles from Kindle Serials will cost $1.99.

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