The modern book burners: The tech giants buying thousands of second-hand books - so they can tear off their spines, scan their precious contents... then destroy them: FRED KELLY
- Posted on August 29, 2026
- By Daily Mail
- 1 Views
- 1 min read
In brief
Major technology companies are systematically acquiring thousands of used books through second-hand retailers, only to scan their contents and discard them. This practice raises concerns about literary preservation and the environmental impact of mass book destruction. Publishers and independent booksellers worry about intellectual property exploitation and the sustainability implications of this large-scale acquisition strategy targeting physical books for digital conversion.
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The modern book burners: The tech giants buying thousands of second-hand books - so they can tear off their spines, scan their precious contents... then destroy them: FRED KELLY
When Compass Books in Dartmouth, Devon, received an order earlier this summer for second-hand volumes on these subjects and many more, seller Lucy Hingston was delighted.
