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What Netflix did for movies, Booksfree.com is promising to do for booklovers. For those of you who don't know about Netflix, it is an online service where you select an unlimited number of films from an enormous inventory that are mailed to you, three at a time, in DVD format. You watch them at your leisure and mail them back (postpaid in provided envelopes) all at once or singly. No late fees accrue, and for every DVD you send back, the next on your list, or queue, is sent out to you. Basic membership is around $20 a month for three films at a time. (There are larger membership packages. My sister-in-law Mary Lou gets 5 at a time).
Booksfree.com relies on an identical format and offers four levels of membership: Bronze (casual) members get two books per order mailed out for $7.99 a month; Silver (avid) members get 4 books sent at a time for $12.99 a month; Gold (voracious) members receive 6 books at a time for $17.99 a month; and Platinum (ultimate) members pay $29.99 a month for 12 books at a time (this last level allows for multiple copies of the same title and are good for book clubs).
While I am not touting membership in this organization, I can tell you that if the response from the public is anywhere near what Netflix received (the stock value quadrupled within a year, then split), this is a site worth watching if you sell books for a living. Individuals having access to whatever book they want with no time constraint will have an impact on libraries and used bookstores (especially paperback exchanges). While this most likely won't involve avid collectors who want to own particular copies of books, the casual browser in a shop or online may defer to Booksfree rather than accumulating books on shelves. It is also a draw for students who need books for literature classes, sometimes a very stable part of an inner-city bookstore's clientele.
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