Amazon.com has been battling publishers who want to set higher prices on electronic books. Now the online retailer says there are sales tax implications for publishers that go this route. In a message quietly posted to the Kindle Community page last week, Amazon said that Kindle books where the publisher sets the price "are subject to sales tax based on the publisher's state tax reporting obligations and the taxability of digital books in those states."

Here's the full message posted April 6 to the Kindle Community page:

Several publishers have recently changed the nature of their relationship with Amazon, moving to a business model whereby the publisher, not Amazon, is the seller of record for their books. Kindle books sold under this model are subject to sales tax based on the publisher's state tax reporting obligations and the taxability of digital books in those states. Books where the publisher is the seller of record say "This price was set by the publisher." Nothing has changed with respect to sales taxes on Kindle books where Amazon is the seller of record.

I've asked Amazon to elaborate on this somewhat legalistic language, and clarify its policies on sales tax and Kindle books.

In the last few weeks, some of the big publishing houses such as Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, Hachette and Macmillan have forged new deals with Amazon whereby they will be allowed to set higher Kindle book prices, up to $14.99 in some cases (the same "agency" model that Apple is offering for e-books on the iPad). These publishers never liked Amazon's standard $9.99 price on new release and bestselling e-books.

Amazon has begrudgingly accepted the new terms from these big publishing houses, while trying to hold the line on its $9.99 e-book pricing with smaller publishers. (Random House is the one exception among the big publishers; it hasn't moved to the "agency" model).

It's an interesting twist to see Amazon — which has aggressively fought efforts by various states to force it to collect sales tax online — now informing publishers of their sales tax obligations.

Update: I found some additional information on Amazon's Sales Tax Requirements page. Amazon is now classifying Hachette, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster and Macmillan as merchants that sell items on Amazon, and provides a long list of "the states in which they charge sales tax." But the full implications aren't clear yet.

Update: A publishing industry source, who declined to be identified, confirmed that publishers moving to the "agency" model for e-books — where the publisher is the seller and Amazon is the "agent" — are now responsible for making sure any applicable sales taxes on e-books are collected. But the source said determining where sales tax will apply to Kindle books is a complex matter. It hinges on the number of states where the publisher has a physical presence — or nexus — and which states charge sales tax on digital goods. Currently, the source said, 24 states charge a sales tax on digital goods.

Bottom line: looks like we may see more Kindle books with sales tax tacked on.

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