Well..yeah, but...deep_bluzeFebruary 4 2010, 00:03:51 UTC
The simple fact is that there is a HUGE difference in the cost of an e-book to the publisher over a printed book. Same with Amazon. Neither has to really warehouse with the way storage on computers has blossomed. There is no shipping. There is a basic handling fee, and some format / design, but the profit margin on an e-book, once the initial lifting is done, is MUCH better than on a print book...
Every argument I've heard for ridiculously high book pricing and low print runs in recent years has cited paper and material as the big cost...if that is true, then the savings should be huge.
So, I fall in the middle. I understand there have to be margins so the publisher AND the seller can make a profit, I just don't think they have to be so high.
Re: Well..yeah, but...robertlfleckFebruary 4 2010, 00:24:37 UTC
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I don't disagree, Dave. That's why I said that the fight is not about the price. Once the new model is live in the marketplace, the price will most likely normalize at $9.99 or less for 90% of books from major publishers. The fight is about changing the business model.
Some years ago Diamond Comics Distributors tried a very similar stunt on publishers. They dominated the comic book sales market and tried to dictate how things were going to be. It was a power-mad travesty then, as it is now with Amazon. They've grown quite large and dominant and are beginning to make the same bad decisions that were made in the comic book business.
sounds quite reasonablehauntedcomputerFebruary 5 2010, 19:37:57 UTC
Bob, it's good to hear an industry professional present a non-emotional explanation. I've made arguments to the effect that this battle is going to be good for everyone eventually, mostly because my observation of Kindle readers--they are buying stuff they never before would have dreamed of trying and they are generally consuming more books. I can attest to the incredible value and talent of a good copyeditor who can remember tiny details over hundreds of pages. I think most people understand books don't spring fullblown from the author's tortured brow, unless they happen to be Isaac Asimov's ghost. But from reading more than a thousand blog entries and forum posts on this, I think people don't believe the costs are fairly amortized between the different formats
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Every argument I've heard for ridiculously high book pricing and low print runs in recent years has cited paper and material as the big cost...if that is true, then the savings should be huge.
So, I fall in the middle. I understand there have to be margins so the publisher AND the seller can make a profit, I just don't think they have to be so high.
D
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I don't disagree, Dave. That's why I said that the fight is not about the price. Once the new model is live in the marketplace, the price will most likely normalize at $9.99 or less for 90% of books from major publishers. The fight is about changing the business model.
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