MAIN NEWS HEADLINES
May 10 – May 17, 2007 Edition
Amazon.com Reaches
1 Million Worldwide
Pre-Orders for Potter
SEATTLE, WA/5/8/07–Amazon.com (Nasdaq:AMZN) (www.amazon.com) today announced that, with over two-and-a-half months remaining until the release of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” it has taken more than 1 million pre-orders worldwide for the seventh and final book in the epic series, saving customers more than $17 million. The company also announced today it has further reduced the price of the hardcover edition of the book in the U.S. from $18.89 to $17.99, bringing the customer discount to 49 percent. In accordance with the company’s Pre-order Price Guarantee, all customers who have already pre-ordered the book will be charged this lower price.
In 2005, pre-orders for the sixth book, “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” didn’t reach the 1 million worldwide mark at Amazon until 174 days after the book was first available for pre-order. It took just 95 days to reach that mark for the seventh book. In the US alone, more than 620,000 copies of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” have already been pre-ordered while the company’s site in the U.K. has now surpassed 250,000 pre-orders.
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” has been selling at a record-breaking pace at Amazon since pre-ordering began on February 1, 2007. First-day pre-orders for “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” in the US were 547 percent higher than first-day pre-orders for “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince,” and sales for the seventh book have continued to outpace its predecessor’s both at Amazon.com and each of its international sites.
Last month Amazon.com confirmed that for customers who select standard shipping or better, including Amazon Prime, Amazon.com will guarantee delivery of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” on its release date of Saturday, July 21, to all addresses within the lower 48 states, or the cost of the book will be refunded.
The company also recently launched a search for the “Harry-est Town in America,” the town with the most “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” pre-orders on a per capita basis. Falls Church, Va., continues to hold the top spot in that search.
Amazon.com is also selling the deluxe version of “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows” for $39.00, a savings of 40 percent as well as the audio CD version for $47.97, also a savings of 40 percent. Amazon’s Pre-order Price Guarantee ensures that customers are charged the lowest price offered by Amazon.com from the time they place their order until the release date.
To place an order for the book and to explore Amazon.com’s entire selection of Harry Potter products including books, DVDs, computer and video games, journals and stationery, and more visit www.amazon.com/harrypotter .
About Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN), a Fortune 500 company based in Seattle, opened on the World Wide Web in July 1995 and today offers Earth’s Biggest Selection. Amazon.com, Inc. seeks to be Earth’s most customer-centric company, where customers can find and discover anything they might want to buy online, and endeavors to offer its customers the lowest possible prices. Amazon.com and other sellers offer millions of unique new, refurbished and used items in categories such as health and personal care, jewelry and watches, gourmet food, sports and outdoors, apparel and accessories, books, music, DVDs, electronics and office, toys and baby, and home and garden.
Amazon and its affiliates operate websites, including www.amazon.com, www.amazon.co.uk, www.amazon.de, www.amazon.co.jp, www.amazon.fr, www.amazon.ca, and www.joyo.com.
