Indie booksellers ask Justice Dept. to investigate predatory pricing

The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times report that yesterday the American Booksellers Association, a 109-year-old organization which represents independently owned bookstores, sent a letter to the U.S. Dept. of Justice asking it to investigate what it describes as “predatory pricing” by Amazon, Wal-Mart and Target in their fierce battle to slash prices on selected, best-selling books. Apparently, the tactics of the corporate behemoths are "damaging to the book industry and harmful to consumers.”

Meanwhile, Bloomberg reports that shares of Amazon climbed as much as 23% to $114.75, after the world’s largest online retailer reported a 69% jump in profit and a 28% gain in revenue. Shares of Amazon are up more than 80% year-to-date. Yahoo!