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Sorry, Oprah: Samsung Goes With Amazon for New Book Club

A souped-up version of the Kindle App gives Galaxy owners 12 free e-books a year.

Re/code composite image

Samsung announced Wednesday a partnership with Amazon to create a custom version of Kindle for its phones and tablets.

While the Kindle app, of course, already works on Android devices, Galaxy owners will get a big perk — 12 free e-books a year, with Samsung owners getting to choose from among four free titles each week.

The app debuts on Samsung’s Galaxy S5 smartphone, and will also work on existing phones and tablets running Android 4.0 or later.

Samsung, which once saw itself as a potential major content distributor, has been taking a different tack of late, frequently looking to outsiders. The Galaxy S5 debuted with a range of free content, which varies by region but includes deals with Evernote, Bloomberg Businessweek, Box and more.

“With this service we demonstrate our commitment to creating and broadening key content partnerships that deliver rich and personalized experiences for our customers,” said Lee Epting, vice president of Samsung’s Media Solution Center Europe.

The Kindle app, meanwhile, will still find itself competing with both the Google Play store and Samsung’s own Books app.

Samsung has been pulling back on some original software development while continuing to invest in other areas.

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

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