> That math is why many book apps like those from Bookshop, Kobo and Barnes & Noble’s Nook haven’t typically let you buy e-books and audiobooks from their iPhone or Android apps. Instead, you must leave the app, buy from the bookstore’s website and hop back into the app to read or listen to it.<p>Not accurate, at least for Kobo. They accepted Google's billing system, so buying from the Kobo app on Android hooks into your Google Wallet billing method and works without an issue.<p>It does mean you can't use Kobo gift cards towards purchases made on your phone, but you can always pop onto the website to do that.<p>I'm actually really glad that Kobo just did that, even if Google is taking a ridiculous cut. Anecdotally I'm buying way more impulse books on Kobo (i.e. a book on sale for $2.99 or less) since they got the app working with Google Wallet.
Perhaps a bit off topic, but we really need to stop referring to digital books obtained through Google, Amazon, and other publishers as sold. Amazon has made it very clear in recent months that you do not purchase kindle books you purchase a license. It's a nuanced difference, but one I know this audience will appreciate.
> Google said Amazon doesn’t have a special deal. The company and Amazon declined to offer specifics.<p>> Google and Amazon say the payment options aren’t new. Google said Amazon was among a few companies that had been able to offer non-Google payment options for their existing customers, under a test program.<p>"It's not a special deal. It's just that only a few companies can benefit from it."<p>Who are they kidding, seriously?
> With its own one-click e-book and audiobook purchases in Android apps, Amazon doesn’t seem to be paying Google a fee. That gives Amazon a rare privilege among digital booksellers: It can turn a profit from selling e-books and audiobooks in a smartphone app.<p>So, an article entirely built on speculation.<p>Speculations refuted by Google: "Google said Amazon doesn’t have a special deal.".<p>What's more likely is that the share of users who buy books exclusively from the mobile Kindle app is extremely low, and that therefore it's worth selling at a loss or no profit for Amazon, to retain the customer experience.<p>It's also likely that Amazon doesn't have a special deal with Google, but has a special deal with book publishers, which means it's able to turn a profit even with the 30% app store cut.