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As If Libraries Didn't Have Enough Competition: Paperspine, the Netflix for Books, Launches

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December 7, 2007 | 5:00 p.m
As If Libraries Didn't Have Enough Competition: Paperspine, the Netflix for Books, Launches

Paperspine—basically the books version of Netflix—launched last week. You can choose from 150,000 paperback titles and four subscription plans, ranging from $9.95 to $24.95 a month. Sure, that's cool. But, um, isn't this just like a library? I guess you can be a lazy bum and not schlep back and forth from your local branch. (Think of all the cardio you're missing out on!) You won't have to deal with pesky late fees ...

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports:

[Dustin] Hubbard -- who co-founded Paperspine with two other Microsoft employees (he declined to identify them because they are still employed at the company) -- thinks those hurdles are surmountable.

"Books are expensive," said Hubbard, adding that a person can easily drop $50 at Amazon.com on three paperbacks.

"If you read four or five books a year, the service is not that useful," he says. "But if you read one or two or more books a month the service really pays for itself."

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