Audible Wins Contract Breach Claim in Lawsuit Brought by Authors

Audiobook platform Audible Inc. successfully defended itself against contract breach claims brought by self-published authors after a judge said their contract included a stipulation for deducting returns from royalties.

The agreement author’s sign when publishing to the platform is unambiguous and entitles the Amazon.com Inc. unit to deduct returns, the court said.

While “independent authors may well view Audible’s return policy as unfair. They may not have fully understood the policy or the way it affected their royalties. But that does not cast doubt on the meaning of “return” in the Agreement,” Judge Jesse M. Furman said.

The court declined ...