1. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has released a list of each major e-book vendor and their privacy policies, based on the following questions:

Can they keep track of searches for books?
Can they monitor what you're reading and how you're reading it after purchase and link that information back to you? Can they do that when the e-book is obtained elsewhere?
What compatibility does the device have with books not purchased from an associated eBook store?
Do they keep a record of book purchases? Can they track book purchases or acquisitions made from other sources?
With whom can they share the information collected in non-aggregated form?
Do they have mechanisms for customers to access, correct, or delete the information?
Can they share information outside the company without the customer's consent?

2. Meanwhile, e-reader sales are experiencing an “alarmingly precipitous decline” this year, after five straight years of very good sales. Most of the news stories about this generally attribute the decline entirely to tablet computers, although I think consumers are also much less likely to obsessively update their e-readers than, say, their phones. Still, it's funny how the e-ink user's refrain from a few years ago—nobody wants to stare at a screen for hours!—has almost completely disappeared.