Amazon Launches Author Stores

by Craig Morgan Teicher -- Publishers Weekly, 12/30/2008 9:34:00 AM

Amazon has added a new way of finding books to its site, which the company is calling Author Stores, single pages that feature all books from a particular author, plus, in many cases, an author photo and some related content, such as a biography, message board and streaming video.

When the feature launched on December 29, Amazon went live with 2,500 Author Stores featuring many popular authors, such as Stephen King, J.K. Rowling and James Patterson. Customers access the stores through the normal search box—when a shopper searches for an author who has a store, a link appears at the top of the search results next to Amazon’s Author Store logo.

According to Amazon publicity manager Andrew Herdener, Author Stores represent “ somewhat of a watershed moment for our store in that, up until this point, it's always been organized around individual items. Author Stores adds a whole new dimension to the way the store is organized (around authors) and one that is both good for customers and for authors.” Herdener added that it is clear from the way customers shop on Amazon--using search terms--that the new Authors Stores will be something shoppers will like. Apple uses a similar feature in its iTunes store for popular artists.

Herdener also said that it’s Amazon’s long-term goal to eventually have an Author Store for every author whose books are available through Amazon.