Amazon has been the leading online retailer for books for many years, acquiring companies such as Abebooks and Book Depository to further consume the bookselling industry.
Some Amazon customers may have also noticed a link between Amazon and Goodreads, and may wonder if Amazon owns Goodreads as well? If you’d like to find out, keep reading this article to learn the information I gathered on this topic!
Key Takeaways
Does Amazon Own Goodreads In 2022?
Amazon has owned the Goodreads platform since acquiring the company in 2013. Amazon customers can now link their Amazon account to their Goodreads account, leave reviews on Amazon and Goodreads at the same time and more. This was met with initial criticism, but Goodreads has since gained a larger user base of 60 Million users.
If you’d like to learn more about why Amazon purchased Goodreads, how Amazon and Goodreads work together and more, keep reading this article for more useful facts, tips and information!
Why Did Amazon Buy Goodreads?
Amazon acquired Goodreads in other to further increase its place in the book industry.
As Amazon is the largest book retailer in the world, acquiring Goodreads better enables the company to track popular book trends and provide customers with the books they’d like to read.
As well, by owning Goodreads, Amazon has been able to stay one step ahead of companies like Barnes & Noble and Apple, whose customers make up a fair portion of Goodreads users.
Therefore, Amazon’s purchase of Goodreads has better allowed the company to retain their position in the e-commerce market for bookselling.
How Much Did Amazon Pay for Goodreads?
When Amazon initially purchased Goodreads, they wouldn’t disclose the amount to the public to any news or media sources.
However, shortly after the merger took place, it was reported that Amazon spent $150 million to acquire Goodreads, which surprised media sources due to Goodreads not having a huge following at the time.
However, the price Amazon paid for Goodreads proved to be successful, as since Goodreads was acquired in 2013 at 16 million members, the company has since grown to house over 60 million members, many of which have their accounts directly attached to Amazon.
Was Amazons Purchase of Goodreads Bad?
When Amazon purchased Goodreads, the news was met with a lot of hostility, and the book community was referred to by news outlets and the media as being “stunned.”
Many book readers were disappointed at this news, as part of the reason they had enjoyed Goodreads was because it was a comparatively smaller company to Amazon and felt like an authentic place for book readers to come together.
However, when Amazon added Goodreads to their brand line-up, the book community felt that the app would no longer be as enjoyable or as authentic of an experience due to various aspects, such as the consistent Amazon advertisements featured prominently in the app.
How Did Amazon Change Goodreads?
Amazon altered Goodreads slightly in how customers and members communicate and log their books between Amazon.com and the Goodreads app.
For example, customers can now log in to Goodreads through their Amazon.com account.
As well, customers can keep track of the books they’re reading on their Kindle Device and other books by adding books to their Goodreads profile from their Amazon purchase history.
Additionally, customers can share their Kindle notes and highlights with friends on Goodreads as well as groups they’re members of by adding their Kindle books to their Goodreads profile.
Do Goodreads Reviews Show Up on Amazon?
The Goodreads app and website are synced with Amazon.com for customer and reader reviews when customers use their Amazon account to log in to Goodreads.
Therefore, when a Goodreads member adds their review for a book on their Goodreads page, it will automatically be added to the reviews for the same book on Amazon.com.
However, the sync only works one way, meaning if a customer leaves a book review on Amazon.com, the review will not show up on their Goodreads page.
Do You Have to Use Amazon to Log in to Goodreads?
Customers are not required to use Amazon when creating an account on Goodreads. Currently, Goodreads allows customers the option to log in with email, Facebook or through their Amazon account.
Therefore, customers who prefer to keep their Amazon account separate from their Goodreads profile can easily do so by choosing one of the other log-in options available through the app.
However, customers should note that by linking their Amazon account to their Goodreads profile, they can better sync their reading goals and locate good reviews and recommendations.
As well, by linking their purchase history to Goodreads, customers’ book purchases will automatically be added to their shelf, which cuts down on the time usually spent locating the exact edition of a book for the page count.
Did Amazon Ruin Goodreads?
When Amazon acquired Goodreads, the merger was largely met with hostility and disapproval from media outlets in the book community, as Goodreads members were worried that Amazon would ruin Goodreads.
However, contrary to what many believed would occur, Amazon has made very few changes to the Goodreads website and app and has kept the original look, aesthetic and function of the website intact.
The only major change Amazon has made to Goodreads is the way customers can log in and communicate with other members.
Therefore, despite Amazon being a goliath company within the book community, they have, for the most part, kept the user experience of Goodreads authentic and intact.
To know more, you can also read our posts on Amazon book rental, Amazon Kindle return policy, and buying used books on Amazon.
Conclusion
Amazon purchased Goodreads in 2013 in order to further solidify its position in the book industry. Amazon customers can now create accounts on Goodreads directly through their Amazon account and can use the feature to better track their reading goals.
Goodreads members can link their Amazon purchase history to Goodreads which will add books they’ve purchased from Amazon to their Goodreads profile. As well, customers can link their Kindle notes and highlights to Goodreads and share them within the app.