Check your Amazon account because there might just be some free money waiting for you

If you’ve ever bought an ebook before, you might have an unexpected windfall coming your way. In July 2013, a court ruled that Apple had violated antitrust and state laws by conspiring to raise the prices of ebooks. Apple had apparently been working with Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin, and Simon & Schuster to raise the prices of new ebooks above the $9.99 limit set by Amazon. While all five publishers reached settlements with the U.S. Department of Justice and individual states, Apple went all the way to trial. They lost. Big time.

The court ordered Apple to pay customers $400 million in damages. Whoa, right? Since the trial, they’ve been appealing the verdict at various levels of the appellate court system, but last March, the Supreme Court upheld the ruling. The first of Apple’s payments have begun to go out to customers in the form of Amazon credits.

How do you know if you’re entitled to receive a credit? If you purchased an ebook from Hachette, Harper Collins, Macmillan, Penguin, or Simon & Schuster between April 1, 2010 and May 21, 2012, via Apple, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, or other online retailers, you will receive an automatic credit. Amazon credits have already been popping up, so be sure and check your email (including your spam folder!). Dollar amounts vary from $6.93 for each New York Times e-bestseller you may have purchased to $1.57 for other titles.

For more details, visit Amazon’s FAQ.

BRB we’ve got an Amazon credit burning a hole in our wallets, and there are books to buy. So. Many. Books.

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