You have to place a new order for 25 or more books and add POD distribution.
New POD distribution titles go through many processing steps in order to ensure compliance, and quality guidelines, are met during the life of the title in our distribution network. First, our preflight team evaluates the title files, and metadata, to ensure that all of the content complies with our distribution guidelines. During the production phase, we confirm what printing press and binders will be assigned to the title to fulfill future POD orders from our retail partners. This evaluation is made after considering the specifications of your title. Varying production methods are used to produce color books, black only books, perfect bound books, case bound books and books with dust jackets. This POD production run is used to establish the future production route for your title. During this phase, your finalized production printing files are moved into our production file server fault where special programming is used to make your titles available for ordering by select retailers. Only titles that are signed up for POD are finger printed for production and setup in the retail vault. Bulk print runs are not fingerprinted for POD production nor are they setup in the POD retail vault.
In a nutshell, the 25 book minimum order is used to confirm the content meets the distribution guidelines and to establish the production path that future POD printing orders from our retailers will follow. We have to make at least 25 books to accomplish this, and it would be wasteful just to charge you for this work and throw it away, so the 25 are sent to you.