The Amazon author contract states that the rights to Amazon are perpetual. After six months there is an 80/20 split of the Amazon short in question in Amazon's favour. My boss, the lawyer, interpreted it exactly as I did. The rights of the Amazon short submitted are perpetual. He concurs and I agree, that it means that Amazon have rights even after you have stopped displaying your work. OK at 0.49c a download, no-one is going to get rich, but certainly never the author of the short story submitted; and in my case, 9 short stories which they have requested. If the short stories are ever published, have I assigned my rights to Amazon for the rest of my life for that work (perpetual)? That is the way my lawyer and I interpret the author contract, but then we are in the UK.
If there is anyone out there who reads it in a different way, please let me know.
I contacted the Royal Society of Literature today (in London, England) to ask the question: If I want to enter my short stories in the RSL competition (entry cut off date 14th February 2007), and also enter them on Amazon Shorts, will this be allowed: Answer - No.
The Amazon Shorts programme is a considered a publication. Therefore, if the work submitted to Amazon is published on Amazon, it is considered as assigned to them for first publication rights and when a new publishing contract is entered into, Amazon have an 80/20 split. That is the way the Amazon contract is worded but I might be wrong.
Barbara