Worlds with Kindle, Amazon wants to monetize fanfiction - Numerama

Since its launch, the Kindle Store has steadily expanded to sell more content. First opened to the novels, digital Amazon store then welcomed newspapers, magazines and, more recently, news and short stories. Today, the e-commerce giant is interested in fanfiction.

Stories amateurs of varying quality, fanfiction (or fanfics) are stories “ some fans write to extend, amend or even totally transform a media product they love, it Whether it’s a novel, a manga, a television series, a film, a video game or a celebrity , “says the Wikipedia article devoted to the phenomenon. In graphics, talking about fanart.

These adaptations are very popular in some communities that coalesced around a particular universe. There are, for example, tens of thousands of written adventures featuring characters from Star Wars, Harry Potter, Batman … These remixes are not always accepted by the authors of these imaginary worlds, not to mention that these creations problems copyrights.

Amazon Kindle with Worlds idea is simple: it is to be a sort of bridge between the heirs of a work and its fans. The electronics giant intends to sell the works derived from a particular universe fans. The money collected will then be shared between the person entitled, Amazon and the fan who has written the story. And along the length of the story, the fan will be a percentage higher or lower.

Between 5000 and 10,000 words, the aspiring writer will receive 20% of the amount. These short stories are usually sold less than a dollar (0.99 dollars). Over 10,000 words, the fan will increase the share to 35%. According to Amazon, the selling price will often be between 0.99 and 3.99 dollars. By cons, it is not clear whether it is possible to split a story for sale by chapters.

Those agreeing to participate in the program established by Amazon should be aware that they cede all their rights on Amazon fanfiction published under Kindle Worlds. Furthermore, all the stories will not be accepted: pornographic and erotic stories and stories incorporating offensive content (racism, violence, vulgarity …) will not be tolerated

.

also works infringing intellectual property, delivering a “low user experience ” or naming excessively marks will be rejected. Ditto for content involving crossovers (write a history of the universe combining different characters, such as Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter). Creativity must navigate between all these constraints.

First, Amazon has signed agreements with three world very popular, especially in the United States. This is Gossip Girl (Cecily von Ziegesar), Pretty Little Liars (Sara Shepard) and Vampire Diaries (LJ Smith). These three literary works were the subject of a television adaptation and are especially produced by Warner Bros.. Other licenses will be added in the coming months

Kindle Worlds platform to be launched in the U.S. in June.