Kindle MatchBook

I received, this morning, an email from Amazon's Kindle Direct Publishing team. It read:

Hello,

We are excited to introduce Kindle MatchBook, an innovative new program which enables you to offer your Kindle book at a discount when readers purchase your print book, so you can sell more books. It's easy to enroll.

Here's how it works:

1. Select your Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP) title on your KDP Bookshelf and check the Enroll box for Kindle MatchBook on the "Rights & Pricing" page.
2. Set the discount for your book by choosing a promotional list price of $2.99 or less.
3. Save your Kindle MatchBook preferences.

By enrolling your book, you will be among the first to be able to take advantage of this new program. The Kindle MatchBook discount you select will not appear on Amazon.com until the program is fully launched in the coming weeks. We will notify you by e-mail as soon as your Kindle MatchBook discount is live. Your readers will soon have an easy and affordable way to read your book in both print and digital formats.

Visit your KDP Bookshelf today to enroll your books in Kindle MatchBook.

Best regards,
The Kindle Direct Publishing Team

My first impression is that this program is very similar to Amazon's AutoRip service.  When purchasing certain "hard copy" (CDs mostly but there are a few vinyl options) albums,a consumer can automatically download MP3 versions of the music for free.

I find this approach works better with music than with books.  I like having a CD for my car and MP3 for my computer or MP3player.  The only time I've purchased a digital copy of a book after having already bought a hard-copy was when I had a book sustain water damage during a move. Furthermore, the majority of my paperback sales have not been via Amazon, so my paperback customers would not be able to take advantage of this program.

However, I am the queen of "early adopters"; so, I have enrolled Dremiks in the program.  I'll keep you updated on the status of sales and the efficacy of this new program.