Have you heard? Large credit card companies have come down on Paypal, so now PayPal is cutting off their services to books "they" find objectionable. This means books that once were on sale at Amazon and other sites supported by PayPal, are now banned.
Their target Erotica Fiction. Due to the graphic nature of some of these books, they can no longer be sold on certain sites. But their policies deeming what is considered unacceptable, is beyond ridiculous. They actually have told merchants that mild, consensual BDSM will be considered rape and therefore subject to being in violation of their ToS. Plus, sex that involves a woman age 18 or 19 with an older man will be regarded as pedophilia. Are they telling you what you can consider acceptable sex?
For example:
Does this mean they are banning Twilight because Bella is 17 and Edward is 100 something?
Seriously, what time period are we living in?
Who's next on the list to be banned? Religion? Political beliefs? Really it's only a small leap.
And it's fiction people! They are banning fiction! Things that are made up. Why PayPal thinks it can dictate what you spend YOUR money on, I have no idea.
It's outrages! As an indie author I take personal insult to this. This targets a majority of indie authors.
All writers and their readers should stand up and voice their opposition to financial services companies censoring books. Authors should have the freedom to publish legal fiction, and readers should have the freedom to read what they want.
If you have connections to mainstream media, encourage them to pick up on the story. Encourage them to call the credit card companies and pose this simple question, "PayPal says they're trying to enforce the policies of credit card companies. Why are you censoring legal fiction?"
These corporations are now trying to tell you what you can, and cannot read!
So please pick up a pen and paper and write to the following corporations and tell them how you feel about this. I certainly will.
Their target Erotica Fiction. Due to the graphic nature of some of these books, they can no longer be sold on certain sites. But their policies deeming what is considered unacceptable, is beyond ridiculous. They actually have told merchants that mild, consensual BDSM will be considered rape and therefore subject to being in violation of their ToS. Plus, sex that involves a woman age 18 or 19 with an older man will be regarded as pedophilia. Are they telling you what you can consider acceptable sex?
For example:
Does this mean they are banning Twilight because Bella is 17 and Edward is 100 something?
Seriously, what time period are we living in?
Who's next on the list to be banned? Religion? Political beliefs? Really it's only a small leap.
And it's fiction people! They are banning fiction! Things that are made up. Why PayPal thinks it can dictate what you spend YOUR money on, I have no idea.
It's outrages! As an indie author I take personal insult to this. This targets a majority of indie authors.
All writers and their readers should stand up and voice their opposition to financial services companies censoring books. Authors should have the freedom to publish legal fiction, and readers should have the freedom to read what they want.
If you have connections to mainstream media, encourage them to pick up on the story. Encourage them to call the credit card companies and pose this simple question, "PayPal says they're trying to enforce the policies of credit card companies. Why are you censoring legal fiction?"
These corporations are now trying to tell you what you can, and cannot read!
So please pick up a pen and paper and write to the following corporations and tell them how you feel about this. I certainly will.
Visa, Inc.
PO Box 8999
San Francisco, CA 94128-8999
Phone: 415-932-2100
Website: http://www.corporate.visa.com
Key Executives
Mr. Joseph W. Saunders , Exec. Chairman and Chief Exec. Officer
Mr. John M. Partridge , Pres and Pres of Visa USA
Mr. Byron H. Pollitt Jr., Chief Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer
Mr. Joshua R. Floum , Gen. Counsel
Mr. William M. Sheedy , Group Pres of Americas
American Express Company
World Financial Center
200 Vesey Street
New York, NY 10285
Phone: 212-640-2000
Fax: 212-640-0404
Website: http://www.americanexpress.com
Key Executives
Mr. Kenneth I. Chenault , Chairman, Chief Exec. Officer, Member of Operating Committee, Chairman of American Express Travel Related Services Company Inc and Chief Exec. Officer of American Express Travel Related Services Company Inc
Mr. Daniel T. Henry , Chief Financial officer, Exec. VP and Member of Operating Committee
Mr. Edward P. Gilligan , Vice Chairman
Mr. Stephen J. Squeri , Group Pres of Global Corp. Services and Member of Operating Committee
Mr. Daniel Harris Schulman , Group Pres of Enterprise Growth
Mastercard Incorporated
2000 Purchase Street
Purchase, NY 10577
Phone: 914-249-2000
Fax: 914-249-4206
Website: http://www.mastercard.com
Key Executives
Mr. Ajaypal S. Banga , Chief Exec. Officer, Pres, Director, Member of Exec. Committee, Chief Exec. Officer of MasterCard International and Pres of Mastercard International
Ms. Martina Hund-Mejean , Chief Financial Officer and Member of Exec. Committee
Mr. Chris A. McWilton , Pres of U.S. Markets, Member of Exec. Committee and Pres of U.S. Markets of MasterCard International
Mr. Gary J. Flood , Pres of Global Products & Solutions, Member of Exec. Committee and Pres of Global Products & Solutions - Mastercard International
Mr. Noah J. Hanft , Chief Payment System Integrity officer, Chief Franchise Integrity officer, Chief Compliance officer, Gen. Counsel, Chief Compliance officer, Corp. Sec. and Member of Exec. Committee
Discover Financial Services
2500 Lake Cook Road
Riverwoods, IL 60015
Phone: 224-405-0900
Fax: 224-405-4993
Website: http://www.discoverfinancial.com
Key Executives
Mr. David W. Nelms , Chairman and Chief Exec. Officer
Mr. Roger Hochschild , Pres and Chief Operating Officer
Mr. R. Mark Graf , Chief Financial Officer, Chief Accounting Officer and Exec. VP
Mr. Carlos Minetti , Pres of Consumer Banking & Operations and Exec. VP
Mr. Harit Talwar , Exec. VP and Pres of Us Cards
eBay Inc. (owns PayPal)
2065 Hamilton Avenue
San Jose, CA 95125
Phone: 408-376-7400
Fax: 408-516-8811
Website: http://www.ebayinc.com
Key Executives
Mr. Pierre M. Omidyar , Founder and Chairman
Mr. John J. Donahoe , Chief Exec. Officer, Pres, Pres of Auction Bus. Unit, Interim Pres of Ebay Marketplaces, Interim Pres of Paypa and Director
Mr. Robert H. Swan , Chief Financial Officer and Sr. VP of Fin.
Mr. Mark T. Carges , Chief Technology Officer and Sr. VP of Global Products - Marketplaces
Ms. Elizabeth L. Axelrod , Sr. VP of HR
PO Box 8999
San Francisco, CA 94128-8999
Phone: 415-932-2100
Website: http://www.corporate.visa.com
Key Executives
Mr. Joseph W. Saunders , Exec. Chairman and Chief Exec. Officer
Mr. John M. Partridge , Pres and Pres of Visa USA
Mr. Byron H. Pollitt Jr., Chief Financial Officer and Principal Accounting Officer
Mr. Joshua R. Floum , Gen. Counsel
Mr. William M. Sheedy , Group Pres of Americas
American Express Company
World Financial Center
200 Vesey Street
New York, NY 10285
Phone: 212-640-2000
Fax: 212-640-0404
Website: http://www.americanexpress.com
Key Executives
Mr. Kenneth I. Chenault , Chairman, Chief Exec. Officer, Member of Operating Committee, Chairman of American Express Travel Related Services Company Inc and Chief Exec. Officer of American Express Travel Related Services Company Inc
Mr. Daniel T. Henry , Chief Financial officer, Exec. VP and Member of Operating Committee
Mr. Edward P. Gilligan , Vice Chairman
Mr. Stephen J. Squeri , Group Pres of Global Corp. Services and Member of Operating Committee
Mr. Daniel Harris Schulman , Group Pres of Enterprise Growth
Mastercard Incorporated
2000 Purchase Street
Purchase, NY 10577
Phone: 914-249-2000
Fax: 914-249-4206
Website: http://www.mastercard.com
Key Executives
Mr. Ajaypal S. Banga , Chief Exec. Officer, Pres, Director, Member of Exec. Committee, Chief Exec. Officer of MasterCard International and Pres of Mastercard International
Ms. Martina Hund-Mejean , Chief Financial Officer and Member of Exec. Committee
Mr. Chris A. McWilton , Pres of U.S. Markets, Member of Exec. Committee and Pres of U.S. Markets of MasterCard International
Mr. Gary J. Flood , Pres of Global Products & Solutions, Member of Exec. Committee and Pres of Global Products & Solutions - Mastercard International
Mr. Noah J. Hanft , Chief Payment System Integrity officer, Chief Franchise Integrity officer, Chief Compliance officer, Gen. Counsel, Chief Compliance officer, Corp. Sec. and Member of Exec. Committee
Discover Financial Services
2500 Lake Cook Road
Riverwoods, IL 60015
Phone: 224-405-0900
Fax: 224-405-4993
Website: http://www.discoverfinancial.com
Key Executives
Mr. David W. Nelms , Chairman and Chief Exec. Officer
Mr. Roger Hochschild , Pres and Chief Operating Officer
Mr. R. Mark Graf , Chief Financial Officer, Chief Accounting Officer and Exec. VP
Mr. Carlos Minetti , Pres of Consumer Banking & Operations and Exec. VP
Mr. Harit Talwar , Exec. VP and Pres of Us Cards
eBay Inc. (owns PayPal)
2065 Hamilton Avenue
San Jose, CA 95125
Phone: 408-376-7400
Fax: 408-516-8811
Website: http://www.ebayinc.com
Key Executives
Mr. Pierre M. Omidyar , Founder and Chairman
Mr. John J. Donahoe , Chief Exec. Officer, Pres, Pres of Auction Bus. Unit, Interim Pres of Ebay Marketplaces, Interim Pres of Paypa and Director
Mr. Robert H. Swan , Chief Financial Officer and Sr. VP of Fin.
Mr. Mark T. Carges , Chief Technology Officer and Sr. VP of Global Products - Marketplaces
Ms. Elizabeth L. Axelrod , Sr. VP of HR
Tell the credit card companies you want them to give PayPal permission to sell ebooks without censorship or discrimination. Let them know that PayPal's policies are out of step with the major online ebook retailers who already accept these books as they are. These corporations need to hear from you. Pick up the phone and call them. Email them. Start petitions. Sign petitions. Blog your opposition to censorship. Post open letters to the executives on your blog, then tweet and Facebook hyperlinks to your letters. Force the credit card companies to join the discussion about censorship. And yes, express your feelings and opinions to PayPal as well. Ask them to work on your behalf to protect you and your readers from censorship. Tell them how their proposed censorship will harm you.
These executives need to be held accountable for censoring writers.
Here are some emails,
Scott Shipman
scott@ebay.com
Jonathan Muller
jmuller@paypal.com
Jonathan Fox
jfox@ebay.com
I also ask you to check out this link in which the National Coalition Against Censorship and American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression have banded together to protest PayPal's actions: http://ncac.org/NCAC-ABFFE-Send-Letter-To-PayPal-eBay#.T1UddFUT23k.facebook
These executives need to be held accountable for censoring writers.
Here are some emails,
Scott Shipman
scott@ebay.com
Jonathan Muller
jmuller@paypal.com
Jonathan Fox
jfox@ebay.com
I also ask you to check out this link in which the National Coalition Against Censorship and American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression have banded together to protest PayPal's actions: http://ncac.org/NCAC-ABFFE-Send-Letter-To-PayPal-eBay#.T1UddFUT23k.facebook
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