Amazon said it will close Kindle digital libraries in China and stop selling readers to local retailers in an effort to “change the company’s priorities.” In a post on messaging app WeChat, the company said the digital library will stop working at the end of June 2023, and that customers in China won’t be able to buy new e-books after that date, and won’t be able to download books they’ve already bought a year later. According to the company, which indicated it would provide compensation to Chinese customers who bought a Kindle this year.
Amazon’s announcement came as foreign tech companies are terminating or downsizing their business in China, coinciding with the entry into force of a strict data privacy law that governs how companies collect and store data, but Amazon said its other business continues in China. “Amazon China’s strong commitment to customers will not change. We have established a broad business base in China and will continue to innovate and invest,” the company said in a statement. The company said it has 10,000 employees in China with offices in 12 cities.
Source: El Iktisad
