As a Consumer...
...I find the entire fracas mystifying. I don't doubt for a second that Amazon has been doing everything it can to leverage it dominant position. That doesn't seem to be good for publishers, authors, and ultimately customers.
In practice, however, it seems that the publishers are fighting back in self-defeating ways. Two weeks ago, I decided to re-read Herbert's masterpiece "Dune". I picked up my Kindle and looked up the title. The cost of ordering a new paperback copy was $8. The cost of an electronic copy was $10. I put my Kindle down, got in my car, and purchased a used copy from a used bookstore for $3. In this scenario, it seems that the only winner was the grey market proprietor.
Where's the happy middle-ground?
Biting the hand that feeds IT
