[GNU/FSF Press] Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos apologizes for Kindle ebook deletion. FSF calls upon Amazon to free the ebook reader.

[John Sullivan]

## Amazon's CEO Jeff Bezos apologizes for Kindle ebook deletion. Free
   Software Foundation calls upon Amazon to free the ebook reader.

BOSTON, Massachusetts, USA -- Thursday, July 23, 2009 -- The Free
Software Foundation (FSF) welcomed the apology issued today by Amazon
CEO Jeff Bezos, as negative reviews from DefectiveByDesign.org
campaign supporters criticizing the Kindle's use of proprietary
software and Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) to remotely delete
ebooks continued to pour in.

In a post to the Kindle Community forum on Amazon's Web site, Bezos
said:

    This is an apology for the way we previously handled illegally
    sold copies of 1984 and other novels on Kindle. Our "solution" to
    the problem was stupid, thoughtless, and painfully out of line
    with our principles. It is wholly self-inflicted, and we deserve
    the criticism we've received. We will use the scar tissue from
    this painful mistake to help make better decisions going forward,
    ones that match our mission.

    With deep apology to our customers,
    Jeff Bezos
    Founder & CEO
    Amazon.com 

The FSF and Defective By Design, which on Monday called on activists to
post reviews calling attention to the Kindle Swindle's arbitrary
deletion of George Orwell ebooks from hundreds of users' devices,[1]
welcomed Bezos's apology, but said more must be done to remedy the
problems exposed by Amazon's actions.

[1] http://www.defectivebydesign.org/blog/1248

FSF's executive director Peter Brown explained, "Unfortunately this
matter requires more than just changing internal policy. The real issue
here is Amazon's use of DRM and proprietary software. They have
unacceptable power over users, and actual respect necessitates more than
an apology -- it requires abandoning DRM and releasing the Kindle's
software as free software."

The deletion of the Orwell ebooks was Amazon's third blatant
demonstration of the control its software provides over users. In June,
Amazon remotely deleted copies of Ayn Rand books, and prior to that,
they disabled Text-to-Speech functionality for select titles -- a move
which was a slap in the face to all users and particularly to the
visually impaired community.

FSF operations manager John Sullivan added, "Amazon has been a positive
example for Defective By Design to point to in the world of DRM-free
music. We hope that this controversy will show Amazon that they need to
take the same enlightened approach when it comes to ebooks, so Kindle
users can be confident that they won't be Swindled again."

### About the Free Software Foundation

The Free Software Foundation, founded in 1985, is dedicated to promoting
computer users' right to use, study, copy, modify, and redistribute
computer programs. The FSF promotes the development and use of free (as
in freedom) software -- particularly the GNU operating system and its
GNU/Linux variants -- and free documentation for free software. The FSF
also helps to spread awareness of the ethical and political issues of
freedom in the use of software, and its Web sites, located at fsf.org
and gnu.org, are an important source of information about GNU/Linux.
Donations to support the FSF's work can be made at
<http://donate.fsf.org>. Its headquarters are in Boston, MA, USA.

### Media Contacts

Holmes Wilson  
Campaigns Manager  
Free Software Foundation  
+1 (617) 542 5942  
<address@hidden>

Peter Brown  
Executive Director  
Free Software Foundation  
+1 (617) 319 5832

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