eBook lending clubs have been around the last three years and many of the websites have been sold due to the sheer amount of users attracted to Amazon Prime. One of the leading sites, Lendle, was sold last may for six figures and today eBookFling is on the market.
eBookFling was one of the first websites to lend both Kindle and Nook books. It originally launched in 2011 and when it launched we interviewed Anna De Souza on what it was all about. She said “eBookFling is an ebook swapping community that helps people get the most out of their e-reading experience by helping them find people to lend books with.” She went on to say “We feel we provide a better service than our competitors because we actually monitor the trade process. Instead of handing out someone’s e-mail address, we create anonymous one-time-use e-mails to facilitate a trade. It helps to reduce fake-senders, spammers, and other ilk.”
eBook Fling is big business with users buying request credits for around $2.99 and considering each book is around $10.99, there is value. If you participate in the community, you earn credits by loaning out books, allowing you borrow for free. Currently the business has around 100,000 loyal users and grossed over $88,000 profit in 2012. If you are interested in checking out how much it is being sold for, there is a virtual open house tomorrow, you can RSVP HERE.
George Burke, the Founder commented that “eBookFling is my fastest-growing and most successful venture. I feel a sense of accomplishment having made it this far, so I’m happy to sell it to allow me to focus on my other book startups, BookSwim.com for Netflix-style book rental-by-mail and eBookDaily.com for rewarding readers to discover the best free kindle books.
Michael Kozlowski is the editor-in-chief at Good e-Reader and has written about audiobooks and e-readers for the past fifteen years. Newspapers and websites such as the CBC, CNET, Engadget, Huffington Post and the New York Times have picked up his articles. He Lives in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
