The Great Internet Bookselling Rip-Off

I started buying and selling books on the internet about thirteen years ago and at that time although geographically internet bookselling covered the whole world, in other ways it was a small and friendly world with reputable booksellers selling to reasonable customers.

Unfortunately now criminals, scammers, con artists and worst of all those acting technically within the law but supplying a product that is a con trick inside the law, have infiltrated this friendly small world.

The latest of these technically legal scams is lifting articles from Wikipedia, bunching about one hundred pages worth of vaguely related articles into a paperback book and the advertising the book online as though the whole book was about the subject.

Here is an example of an Amazon listing

“ http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ramsgate-Harbour-Railway-Station-Lambert/dp/6133677554/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1295117184&sr=8-1 this is what it say on the Amazon page

Ramsgate Harbour Railway Station [Paperback]

Lambert M. Surhone (Editor), Mariam T. Tennoe (Editor), Susan F. Henssonow (Editor)

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Price: £29.00 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

Usually dispatched within 8 to 11 days.

Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

3 new from £26.24 1 used from £30.59”

And this is the article you actually get for your money http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramsgate_Harbour_railway_station

Here is a description of the book ISBN 6133677554

“High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Ramsgate Harbour railway station is a former railway station in Ramsgate, in the Thanet district of Kent, England. Opened in 1863 as part of the Kent Coast Railway company's extension of its line from Herne Bay, it was conveniently More...

situated for the seaside resort's beach, but it closed in 1926 after a reorganisation of railway lines in the Thanet area. The Herne Bay & Faversham Railway company was founded in 1857. In 1859 it became the Margate & London Railway, and two years later took the name Kent Coast Railway, by which it was known for the rest of its independent existence. It built a line from Faversham to Whitstable Town in 1860, extended it to Herne Bay & Hampton-on-Sea in 1861 and opened the section from there to a station called Ramsgate on 5 October 1863.”